ROURKELA: The world-class hockey stadium - billed as India’s largest - to host the Men’s Hockey World Cup 2023 at Rourkela would be ready in a year, Chief Secretary Suresh Chandra Mohapatra announced here on Tuesday. The stadium will come up on Biju Patnaik University of Technology (BPUT) campus.
Mohapatra, who visited the proposed stadium site on BPUT campus on the day, said after the world cup, the stadium would be used by the Sports department for development of hockey.
“On the instruction of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, we visited the site to expedite work for the country’s largest stadium to host world cup matches as the second venue after Bhubaneswar. Considered the cradle of hockey, Sundargarh district would get much-needed global exposure through the showpiece event,” he said.
Twenty-five days after Chief Minister (CM) Naveen Patnaik announced to set up a world-class and India’s largest hockey stadium at Rourkela to host the Men’s Hockey World Cup a high-level government team on Tuesday visited the proposed stadium site. Accompanied by chairman of Western Odisha Development Council Asit Tripathy, 5T Secretary V Karthikeyan Pandian, Works Secretary Krishan Kumar and Special Secretary to Sports R Vineel Krishna, Mohapatra arrived at Rourkela airport earlier on the day and drove to BPUT.
The Chief Secretary said the team discussed the structure of the stadium, provision for parking space, entry and exit points as well as accommodation for players. A detailed plan and design would be approved shortly and work is likely to start from April. The BPUT campus has ample space of around 150 acre. Nearly 15 acre in one corner of the campus would be used for the stadium. The project would also provide a boost to BPUT with posting of new professors and teachers besides introduction of new technical courses and skill development activities.
Among others, Sundargarh Collector Nikhil Pawan Kalyan, Rourkela MLA and District Planning Committee chairman Sarada Prasad Nayak and Rourkela ADM Aboli Sunil Naravane were present.