Cyclothon Participants Ransack Kalinga Stadium Registration Counter

Broken remnants following the ransacking incident at Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar on Saturday. Photograph: Ashok Panda

Bhubaneswar: Expressing resentment over the inordinate delay in distribution of kits for Saksham Cyclothon event scheduled on Sunday, an irate crowd ransacked the registration counter at gate no-4 of Kalinga Stadium here on Saturday afternoon.

They complained that the organizers had failed to start the registration process and provide free T-shirts, caps and helmets for Sunday’s event. “We were standing in a queue for more than four hours and waited for the officials to open the registration counter. But they did not do it,” an agitator said.

Police rushed to the spot and assured the agitators that they will receive their kits required for participating in the event.

Adding to the woes of the event organisers, the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) slapped a fine of Rs 1 crore on them for erecting a hoarding in the ‘no hoarding zone’. Besides, it also slapped fine on Petroleum Conservation Research Association (PCRA) authorities for putting up the hoarding in gross violation of its rules.