KARNAIL SINGH STADIUM WHERE PAAN SINGH TOMAR ostracized by the society, set the National Steeplechase record in 1964.
VIVEK SHUKLA
When you head towards Chelmsford Road from Connaught Place to reach the New Delhi Railway Station, a small narrow road on the left can take you to the Karnail Singh Stadium. It was earlier known as the Paharganj Stadium. It was built in 1954, and despite being small, it has witnessed some very important sporting events over the past seven decades. It was here that Pan Singh Tomar, who had become a dacoit after being ostracized by the society, set the National Steeplechase record in 1964. Before the shooting of the film “Paan Singh Tomar” began, Irrfan Khan visited the stadium. He must have thought of Pan Singh Tomar as to how he used to run on this track. Says R.Kumar, a New Delhi Railway station employee, “ We were in office when we came to know that Irfaan Khan and Tigmanshu Dhuliya, director of Pan Singh Tomar film, were visiting the Karnail Singh Stadium. Naturally, we were really surprised as during those days no championship was taking place there. As it was lunch time, we went there and met Irfaan Khan. Only later, we came to know that as Irfaan Khan was doing a film on Pan Singh Tomar, he came here to feel the mood of the stadium.”
When first Irani Cup held
The high point of Karnail Singh Stadium came when the first Irani Cup match was held here between Mumbai and Rest of India on March 18-20, 1960. The Mumbai team was led by Polly Umrigar, the Rest of India team was captained by Lala Amarnath. According to Rakesh Thapliyal, a noted sports writer, “When Lala ji was leading the Rest of India team, he was also chairman of the selection committee of
Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). During those days nobody knew about ‘Conflict of interests’. As that was not enough, 12th man of Rest of India side, Prem Bhatia batted in that match thanks to the power that Lala ji used to wield in the affairs of BCCI. Bhatia was from Delhi.” Mumbai won the maiden Irani Cup that attracted a huge crowd in the stadium as stars like Nari Contractor, A.G. Milkha Singh, Rusi Surti, Rusi Modi, Budhi Kundran and Naren Tamnhe were playing. P. L. Sharma, now 81 and an old resident of Pahar Ganj, recalls when the first Irani Cup was held close to their home. “ Throughout the match cricket fans of Pahar Ganj, Karol Bagh, Darya Ganj and other parts of the capital thronged the stadium to watch their favourite players. It was carnival time. During those days Delhi was a very small city compared to now.”
Moving away from Irfaan Khan, Karnail Singh stadium was like a second home for Lala Amarnath for several years. As he resided in the Railway officers’ bungalows on the adjacent Panchkuian Road, he often came to watch the cricket matches played here. It took him no more than five minutes to reach the stadium from his house, walking through Vasant Lane.
Salim Durrani- the crowd puller
“ Salim Durrani has played umpteen number of great knocks here while playing for Rajasthan against the host Railways team in Ranji Trophy. He was a very popular player on and off the field. I saw him there in 1973 . The stadium was packed to capacity due to him,” recalls cricket buff and a CEO of a Ghaziabad based firm Sandeep Wahal. The Rajasthan team of that era had star players like Hanumant Singh, Lakshman Singh, and Kailash Gattani. Hanumant Singh was a student of St. Stephen’s College. But Durrani’s popularity overshadowed everyone else.
Says Pawan Arora, a former first class Cricketer of Delhi who had played at Karnail Singh stadium many times, “ After Delhi, local cricket buffs used to support Railway. They identify with it as the Railway team used to be based in the capital. That is why when the Railway team with players like Hyder Ali, Mustaq Ali, Mohammad Tarif ( who is a father of Mohammad Kaif), Rajeshwar Vats, Praveen Kashyap played here, hard-core cricket fans throng the stadium. They cheer for their favourite Railway players.”
Well, Karnail Singh Stadium is a multipurpose sports venue owned by the Indian Railways. It is used for athletics, football, hockey, cricket, boxing, and badminton. “ It has hosted many major athletic meets since its inception. I do not think any noted athletic player of India has not played here, ” says Rakesh Thapliyal.
Well, it was known as Paharganj Railways Stadium to start with. In 1978, the Railways Sports Promotion Board renamed the stadium as the Karnail Singh Stadium.
Who was Karnail Singh?
Karnail Singh is regarded as the legendary Railway Board Chairman who was responsible for several key Railway projects. Under his watchful eyes, the construction of a 250 km Assam Rail link, connecting West Bengal with Assam was completed. A product of Khalsa College, Amritsar, and Thomson Engineering College ( Now IIT), Roorkee, he laid the foundation of many key projects of Railways. Joining Railways in 1928, Karnail Singh swiftly ascended the ranks, eventually assuming the esteemed positions of Chairman of the Railway Board in 1960 and Principal Secretary to the Government of India before his retirement in 1962.
” Before his retirement from the Railways, he established the stadium that is now named after him. He was a very sports minded gentleman,” says R.K. Bhandari, a former employee of Railways.
Karnail Singh Stadium hosted the National Weightlifting Championship in 2004 and the 56th National Kabaddi Championship was held at the ground in 2008. It has a boxing hall, which is used for training by boxers such as Akhil Kumar and hosted the National Boxing Championship in 2007. It was also used as a training venue prior to the Commonwealth Boxing Championship in 2010. Karnail Singh Stadium was the venue for the Ranji Trophy finals in 2002 when the Railways won the Ranji Trophy for the first time.
Though the stadium has not hosted international men’s cricket, it was one of the 1997 Women’s Cricket World Cup venues, hosting a One Day International played by Sri Lanka and West Indies. In 1999, the ground was the venue for a veterans tournament, World Masters Series.
Sadly, Karnail Singh stadium does not get any financial help from the BCCI. Why? “BCCI says that it would generously provide funds for the development of the stadium if it only hosts cricket matches, ” informs Rakesh Thapliyal. It is high time that the BCCI revisit their stand. After all, Karnail Singh stadium has a very rich past and it deserves all the help from cash rich BCCI.
