Fair playing foul

In March this year the Sylhet Sadar upazila sports field in the Shahi Eidgah area was declared as Sheikh Russel Mini Stadium by the National Sports Council (NSC), ushering development work on the field.

But over a little more than six months into the order, the field has been allotted to Sylhet Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SMCCI) for holding the Sylhet International Trader Fair (SITF) 2017, scheduled to start on December 12.

SMCCI has already started building pavilions and developing other facilities on the field with the fair in sight, bringing an end to sporting pursuits of the children of the locality as there are hardly any alternative grounds nearby.

This is a recurring theme for the ground, which is used more often for trade fairs and animal huts rather than serving as a sporting ground.

During a visit to the field on Sunday afternoon, this correspondent found a group of kids playing cricket in one portion, with left-over concrete from last year's fair piled up in other parts alongside garbage of Eid-ul-Azha's animal hut.

A number of structures of the mini stadium are around, but ground development has not started due to the field being allotted for the fair.

According to section 5 of act 36 of year 2000, lease or rent for any other purpose is completely prohibited in a bid to protecting open fields, gardens and natural water reservoirs.

Ashfaq Ahmed, chairman of Sylhet Sadar upazila, said that the ground has not been developed for sports purposes but work will start after the fair.

"After recommendations from the Trade Ministry and Finance Minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhit, the ground was allotted for the SITF for the last time this year. After completion of the mini-stadium, it will follow the rules of the NSC," he said.

The locals want this field to be open for only sporting purposes but authorities have not considered the demands despite protests and meetings.

The field is also surrounded by two hospitals and an educational institute, which face problems due to the fair's crowd and noise, locals said.

On Friday evening, the locals staged a protest demanding that the field not be used for business purposes.

Rahat Anwar, deputy commissioner of Sylhet, said that the authorities have not yet filed any applications seeking permission for the fair, which is mandatory, and that the matter is under consideration.

However Hasin Ahmed, president of SMCCI, claimed that the field has been used for the fair for a couple of years and that they were organising it again after getting proper permissions from all concerned authorities.