Construction on for the main cricket pitch at Berhampur Stadium. Pictures by Gopal Krishna Reddy

Berhampur, June 30: Construction of the much-awaited main turf cricket pitch has started at the stadium here.

An agency approved by the Odisha Cricket Association is carrying out the work. The work began following a nod from the association yesterday.

“We have engaged nine skilled workers and work is on at full swing,” said Shyamapada Ghosh, assistant project in-charge of Indian Plant Feeds, the executing agency.

“Three pitches measuring 10X100ft each will be constructed. We will also construct two practice pitches, each measuring 25X40ft nearby at a later stage,” he said.

The main pitch will have two layers.

“We filled the space with four inches of sand. Three inches or earthen soil and eight inches of black cotton soil will follow. We will press the soil with a half-ton roller and the height of all the layers combined would be reduced to about one foot. Then, we will grow G-2 or Selection-1 grass on the pitch and it will be ready for play,” said Ghosh.

“We have got the black cotton soil from Balangir and it is being tested by the BCCI. Black cotton soil is available only in Balangir, Cuttack Sadar and Kalahandi,” he said.

However, rain and stray dogs are hampering the construction of pitches, said Ganjam District Cricket Association president Ramesh Chandra Patra.

Patra said he had earlier appraised the sports and youth services department authorities about the stray dog menace.

He requested them to arrange for a dog squad to remove all the stray dogs from the vicinity of the pitch.

Experts said maintenance of the pitches was vital. “Removal of soil and grass from the pitches once a year and frequent use of rollers is a must,” Ghosh said.

The sports and youth services department is now renovating and upgrading Berhampur Stadium to make it a multi-purpose arena.

The renovation and the cricket pitch construction are going on simultaneously.