THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: It was way back in 2008 when Kerala began preparation for the 35th National Games, but fast forward five years and even now, several infrastructure projects are racing against time to be ready for the Games now just 26 days away.
Mumbai-based Consultancy Engineering Services and Shashi Prabhu and Associates (CES-SPA) were appointed project management consultants by the Government of Kerala in 2009 to prepare designs, renovation and construction of stadiums. However, National Games officials say no design or work diagrams were produced by the company until 2011 leading to the start of delay and ultimately termination of their contract.
KITCO and BSNL replaced them and the estimated were reworked in 2012 putting the works in the fast lane. Most of the infrastructure development were to be undertaken by the National Games Secretariat while the Kerala State Sports Council and private companies like IL&FS were also involved.
The district will have 14 venues which will host 17 sporting events at the Games along with the Trivandrum International Stadium that will host the opening and closing ceremonies. Construction of many of these venues are complete, but there a still a few venues, especially the new shooting range at Vattiyoorkavu, where the delay has raised eyebrows.
Venue: Shooting Range
Location: Near Central Polytechnic College, Vattiyoorkavu
Cost: Around Rs 17 crore
Hosts: Shooting
Status Check: A venue that has been in the red zone consistently for the last couple of years. Construction has still a long way to go and if the organisers could now complete the works before the Games, it would come as some feat for the people behind it. It will host the rifle and pistol shooting events if it is ready by January 31 that is.
Venue: Trivandrum International Stadium
Location: Kariavattom
Costs: Around Rs 161 crore
Hosts: Opening and Closing Ceremonies
Status Check: Another project which is causing concern among the organisers. The stadium is constructed on a PPP model between the government and private player IL&FS and can host international football and cricket matches. Though the IL&FS officials say that the stadium will be made ready to host the opening and closing ceremonies, it is almost sure that the stadium will not be fully completed by January 31.
Venue: University Stadium
Location: Palayam
Cost: Around Rs 10 crore
Hosts: Athletics
Status Check: University Stadium, which hosts the high-profile athletics competitions at the Games, was one of the first venues to be completed and was inaugurated by then Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan in 2011. However, due to lack of maintenance by owners University of Kerala, NGS were forced to renovate the stadium again. Floodlights are now installed, but repatching of the wornout synthetic track is to be done by New Delhi-based Shiv Naresh Sports.
Venue: Chandrasekharan Nair Stadium
Location: Palayam
Cost: Around Rs 8 crore
Hosts: Athletics (warm up), Cycle Polo
Status Check: Works are still ongoing at the CSN which will act as a warm up arena for athletes and also host the cycle polo matches. One more layer of synthetic track needs to be laid, while marking of the tracks and installing fixtures like those for the jump pits will also consume much time. Rain is explained as the reason for delay while floodlights are also yet to be fixed.
Venue: Squash Complex
Location: Chandrasekharan Nair Stadium, Palayam
Cost: Around Rs 5.50 crore
Hosts: Squash
Status Check: Work at this new facility is nearly complete with minor touchups and beautification works ongoing at the venue. It will host the squash competition in the National Games which could feature the likes of Dipika Pallikal.
Venue: Jimmy George Indoor Stadium
Location: Vellayambalam
Cost: Around Rs 12 crore
Hosts: Gymnastics and Handball
Status Check: Work complete. The stadium was renovated with maple wood flooring, seating facilities and fresh interiors creating a world class indoor facility in the city.
Venue: Agricultural College Indoor Stadium
Location: College of Agriculture, Vellayani
Cost: Around Rs 3 crore
Hosts: Taekwondo and Netball
Status Check: Work was completed a few months back, but repainting of the structure is going on now. A new roofing, maple wood flooring and new lights were installed at the arena which will be called the ‘M B Suresh Babu Plaza’ during the Games.
Venue: Tennis Complex
Location: Kumarapuram
Costs: Around Rs 3 crore
Hosts: Tennis
Status Check: Only primary layer of the synthetic turf has been laid for the four tennis courts here. The complex which has four courts and pre-fabricated structures as changing rooms has minimal facilities and is a huge disappointment and does not do justice to its name ‘tennis complex’!
Venue: Trivandrum Tennis Club
Location: Trivandrum Tennis Club, Kowdiar
Costs: Around Rs 1 crore
Hosts: Tennis (Practice)
Status Check: Three courts were to be constructed here for practice ahead of tennis matches, but work is still progressing after the deadline of December 31 was missed. Sources allege that the practice courts are of a standard below the ones that are being prepared for the main tournament.
Venue: Sreepadam Stadium
Location: Attingal
Cost: Around Rs 7 crore
Hosts: Kho-Kho and Kabbadi
Status Check: The work was supposed to be completed by the Kerala State Sports Council, but was taken over the National Games Secretariat with the work reaching nowhere. Work has been completed now.
Venue: International Aquatics Complex
Location: Pirappancode
Cost: Rs 1.69 crore
Hosts: Swimming, Diving and Water Polo
Status Check: To be called the Mihir Sen Plaza during the Games, the renovation of the aquatics complex, which has hosted national competitions before, was completed a while ago. But a leak at the swimming pool that has been identified recently and is still to be rectified is causing concern to the organisers ahead of the National Games.
Venue: Cycling Velodrome
Location: Lakshmibai National College of Physical Education, Kariavattom
Cost: Around Rs 1.4 crore
Hosts: Cycling
Status Check: The stadium, constructed in 1987, is the only cycling velodrome in Kerala and was expected to be upgraded with new warm-up tracks, media room, dressing rooms and dope-testing facility. However, with the Games fast approaching, SAI was forced to only renovate the stadium with minimal facilities.
Venue: LNCPE Indoor Stadium
Location: Lakshmibai National College of Physical Education, Kariavattom
Cost: Minimal
Hosts: Wushu
Status Check: The venue to host Wushu competitions at the National Games came under much confusion during the past few months with the venue being shifted from Shanghumugham to LNCPE first and then being moved back to Shanghumugham only for LNCPE to be confirmed as the venue. Little arrangements needs to be made to convert the convention centre at LNCPE for Wushu competitions.
Venue: Kovalam Bypass
Locaiton: Vellayani and Vazhamuttom
Cost: Minimal
Hosts: Triathlon
Status Check: The National Games will see the replication of Olympic standards in the event with 1.5 km of swimming followed by 40 km of cycling and then final dash to the finishing line with 10 km of running. Controlling the traffic along the busy stretch of highway will be the key here.
Venue: Shanghumugham Beach
Location: Shanghumugham
Costs: Minimal
Hosts: Beach Handball
Status Check: Shanghumugham Beach will host the beach handball competition in the National Games. Organisers will be hoping for the excitement on the pitch to live up to the expectation of the crowd.