HYDERABAD: The two multi-functional sports complexes at Ameerpet and Shaikpet, which have been consistently incurring net losses over the last five years, are set for an upgrade by the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC). The civic body plans not only to improve the infrastructure of these complexes but also to manage them more professionally. To achieve this, the GHMC has decided to engage an agency under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model for five years to upgrade, operate and maintain the facilities.
Sources said that the GHMC aims to partner with professional sports agencies or academies to modernise the complexes and introduce professional coaching programmes. These efforts would focus on grooming sports enthusiasts who could potentially represent Hyderabad and Telangana in national and international competitions, they added.
Currently, the GHMC owns and operates 12 sports complexes, seven swimming pools and 521 playgrounds, which remain functional year-round. These facilities offer a variety of amenities, including open grounds for sports like cricket, basketball, hockey and football, as well as closed complexes with provisions for badminton, table tennis, boxing, skating, gymnastics and gym facilities. They also house spaces for meditation, yoga and other fitness activities.
Despite these resources, the city’s sports complexes have a poor track record when it comes to producing athletes capable of competing at the national or international level. The situation has not improved in recent years, mainly due to the outdated infrastructure, lack of professional management and limited new investment, the sources pointed out.
They said the sports complexes at Ameerpet and Shaikpet, in particular, have been operating at a loss for the past five years. Key issues include the lack of standardised membership structures, absence of differential pricing, failure to upgrade facilities to international standards and insufficient amenities to attract professional leagues. These factors have driven serious sports enthusiasts to private academies and coaching centres, the sources remarked.
To address these challenges, GHMC is seeking to upgrade these complexes while also reducing the financial burden on the government, they said, adding that this involves balancing capital investment and operational expenses while ensuring the facilities remain affordable for the public.
In this regard, the GHMC has issued a request for proposal (RFP) to appoint a consultant. The consultant will prepare the RFP documents for selecting an agency. Their tasks will include submitting a feasibility report on the proposed upgrades, estimating the required costs, assessing revenue generation potential and developing financial models. The consultant will also serve as a transaction advisor, assisting in the identification of agencies and the preparation of a concession agreement.
The chosen agency will conduct an assessment of the existing sports infrastructure and recommend upgrades aligned with international best practices for optimising asset utilisation and revenue generation. They will also identify innovative practices from other countries that could be replicated in India. The consultant will work on an action plan to improve the utilisation of the sports infrastructure by consulting key stakeholders such as students, coaches, athletes, corporate sponsors and the entertainment industry.