THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The proper utilisation of new infrastructure built for major sporting events after the conclusion of the event is a challenge sports administrators around the world face these days. The abandoned ruins of sports venues and Olympic village at Greece, post Olympics 2002, had made news recently, but Kerala is taking no chance when it comes to the 35th National Games.
The National Games Secretariat (NGS) is already in the process of preparing a post-games legacy plan for the reuse and sale of assets bought for the sporting spectacle slated to be held in the state from January 31 to February 14 next year. The Games Village at Menamkulam, near here, built at a cost of Rs 80 crore to house 5,000 athletes and officials, is at the centre of attention when it comes to the Games’ legacy plans.
The 365 housing units at the Village are, for a change, only a temporary setting for the Games and will be completely shifted after the conclusion of the 15-day event. And so, the National Games officials have invited tenders for the units, built using PUF-based prefabricated material, and their fittings and fixtures, which form the bulk of the reusable assets.
According to their legacy plan, government departments, including health and sports departments, district and state sports councils, sports-related institutions like sports hostels, clubs, stadium change rooms and toilets, equipment storage spaces and sports-promoting institutions will be eligible to bid for the benefits along with the projects approved by the NGS.
“Applications for the reuse of the units have already began reaching us and are under scrutiny of the NGS,” the officials said.
The USP of the housing units is that they are very cheap compared to conventional structures and can be shifted from one place to other. For a concrete building of 700 square feet size, the present rate of construction will be approximately Rs 10 lakh, but the prefab units of the same area are up for grabs for just Rs 1.50 lakh per unit, of which Rs 1 lakh is tentatively for the cost of construction of the foundation, provision for electrification, water supply and sewage disposal.
According to the National Games Secretariat, for sports-related utilisation of the units, the local bodies and the local MLAs can suggest the beneficiaries. If the request meets the criteria and the foundation cost of Rs 1 lakh is remitted before February 28, 2015, the allotment will be free of cost.
The institutions and organisations who wish to get the privilege of the allotment of the housing unites should remit the amount before November 30, the National Games Secretariat said.
