September 30 Monday 2002
PCB to upgrade, develop 14 cricket grounds in the country

KARACHI: Chairman, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Lt Gen Tauqir Zia will launch a mega project of developing 14 grounds and allied facilities across the country from next month, General Manager Development PCB Irfan Mirza said on Sunday.

This massive infrastructure is being developed under PCB's Vision-2005 Infrastructure programme at a cost of Rs 145 million with Balochistan getting the maximum share of Rs 70 million.

In the first phase, three cricket stadiums at Landhi Gymkhana, TMC ground and building of PCB Academy in Karachi in addition to Makli Stadium, Thatta will be inaugurated in the second week of October by PCB chief. Corps Commander, Balochistan and Governor Balochistan are being requested to inaugurate Naushki and Nasirabad Cricket Grounds respectively.

In the second phase seven more grounds at Chaman, Sibi, Turbat (Balochistan), Sukkur, Hyderabad, Mirpurkhas (Sindh), Abbottabad (NWFP) will be inaugurated between November and December 2002.

Mirza said focussing on the development work for the locals in different areas, an international standard cricket stadium at Quetta with a capacity of around 18,000 with floodlights will also be ready by May 2003.

Besides that the up-gradation work on ten grounds including LCCA Ground Lahore, Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, Sports Stadium, Sargodha, Jinnah Stadium, Gujranwala, Javed Sports Complex, Faisalabad, KRL Stadium, Rawalpindi, Pindi Ground, Rawalpindi, Dring Stadium, Bahawalpur, Sialkot Stadium, Sialkot, Sheikhupura Stadium, Peshawar Gymkhana and Arbab Niaz Stadium, Peshawar has also been completed.

Irfan Mirza said apart from Abbottabad ground which is nearing completion the development work on other grounds in NWFP is awaiting signing of MoU with NWFP Government and as soon as it is finalised grounds at D I Khan, Kohat will be upgraded by providing equipment and laying new pitches etc.

He added that at Swat, Mardan and Bannu new grounds will be developed by PCB. In all, NWFP will be having four new and three upgraded grounds in near future. PCB will develop a total number of 28 new grounds/pavilions in different parts of the country. The names of grounds to be inaugurated are: Punjab. Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan.Government College Ground, Multan. Divisional Sports Ground. In Sindh, Regional Cricket Academy, Sindh with 24 players' hostel with allied facilities, Student Sports Cricket Ground, Zone-I, TMC Cricket Ground, Zone-II, Pak Star Malir Cricket Ground, Zone-IV, Landhi Gymkhana Ground, Zone-V, Asifabad Cricket Ground, Zone-VII Asghar Ali Shah Stadium, Karachi, (new pavilion), Makli Stadium Thatta. Shahi Bagh Stadium, Shikarpur. In Balochistan, Naushki Cricket Ground, Nasirabad Cricket Ground.