PORVORIM
It was an ambitious project which began in 2013 and scheduled to finish by 2015, but the Socorro Sports Complex has missed several deadlines and is yet to be completed till date.
The Socorro Sports Complex had been planned to offer facilities for different sports such as a football ground, jogging track, swimming pool, badminton courts (3), table tennis courts (2), squash courts (2), basketball court, gymnasium, multipurpose hall, library, changing rooms, lockers and kids play area.
The foundation stone for this project was laid on February 25, 2013 and project was estimated at Rs 34.5 crore at the time. The sports complex is being constructed by Goa State Industrial Development Corporation (GSIDC) and was to have been completed by April 30, 2015.
While laying the foundation stone for this ambitious project, then chief minister late Manohar Parrikar had said the youth of Socorro would would get good sports facilities soon.
But with the project having missed several deadlines over the last eight years, youth in the area want the Socorro panchayat to coax the GSIDC to at least get the ground ready as early as possible.
When contacted, Socorro Sarpanch Sandeep Vazarkar said the construction of the Socorro Sports Complex is being handled by GSIDC and the panchayat did not want to interfere in their work.
“Even if the project is completed and handed over the panchayat, the Socorro panchayat will not be able to maintain such a huge project. The custody of this big project will have to be given to Sports Authority of Goa for maintenance,” said Vazarkar.
“What Socorro needs is a good market and a playground. If the market complex was constructed at the same place, the panchayat would have earned substantial revenue.”
“There are good swimming pools in Panaji and Peddem-Mapusa. There was no need for an additional swimming pool in Socorro and it is just a waste of land and money. The youth need a good ground at Socorro and not a sports complex,” Vazarkar added.
Porvorim MLA Rohan Khaunte said though the work of the Panchayat Ghar and the ground of Salvador do Mundo panchayat were started in August 2015 has been completed long ago, the work at the Socorro Sport Complex is still in progress.
“Nobody knows when this project will be completed. The six members of Socorro panchayat joined BJP in the name of development in 2019, but they have not been able to complete this project till now,” said Khaunte.
“The complex was meant to provide best sporting facilities to the youth of Socorro and Porvorim. Initially, the GSIDC had some issues with the contractor but the matter was resolved and work resumed in full swing. However, work on the project has slowed down since 2019.”
“Lack of vision and interest to carry forward the ideas has been the weak point of Socorro panchayat,” claimed the MLA.
