The polythene wrapping of the roof of the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium in Cuttack during President Droupadi Murmu’s programme on Wednesday was done to ensure an additional layer of protection from rains and thunderstorm, clarified Odisha Chief Secretary (CS), Pradeep Kumar Jena on Thursday.
The CS was in Cuttack to attend a meeting of the Empowered Committee for Cuttack Development Authority when he spoke to the reporters about the polythene wrapping.
He said, “The Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium is the pride of Cuttack. When there is a programme of the President of India, we do not want to take any chances. The district administration covered the roof of the stadium with polythene sheet as an additional protective cover and to rule out any possible leakages from the roof during the President’s programme.”
“We could have arranged a temporary structure for the President's programme. But with the IMD’s prediction of heavy rainfall in Cuttack, we decided to do it in the indoor stadium and covered the roof with an additional layer of protection. There was no defect in the stadium’s structure,” Jena claimed.
Resentment brewed among the locals of Cuttack after they learnt that the President's venue at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium was covered with polythene sheets as a stopgap arrangement after its roof was reportedly damaged.
It is not the first time that the stopgap arrangement at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium has hurt the sentiments of people. Earlier, the matter came to notice during Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s programme at the same venue a year back.