ROURKELA: EVEN after 32 years of its operation, the Panposh Sports Hostel in Sundargarh district, considered the hockey cradle of Odisha, does not have an approach road and space for its expansion.
The sports hostel is the only hockey training facility in the country to have produced 55 senior and junior international players including seven men and women Olympians and five former captains of Indian Hockey.
Spread over 15 acre, it has two astro-turf fields and a natural grass ground exclusively for hockey training.
Over the years, it got two new hostel buildings for 150 trainee boys and girls, a dining facility and a gymnasium. But there is no space for developing galleries.
While on the eastern end, the sports hostel cannot expand an inch with the single track Birmitrapur-Rourkela railway track running next to its boundary, the western end is restricted by river Koel. On the northern side, Government land is available but it has been encroached. And on the southern end, the hostel is surrounded by private authorised buildings and encroachments in patches.The biggest challenge, however, is the approach road. The existing narrow approach road runs through Panposh Basti, Old Chhend Basti and Kishantola slum.
Alongside the approach road, there are many thatched houses belonging to slum dwellers.
Considering the constraints, the route emerging from Chhend residential colony offers a better option for constructing a wide approach road but for that, encroachments need to be removed from Kishantola.
On Friday, Director (high performance) of Hockey India, David John and two infrastructure specialists of Sports Department visited the hostel to review facilities for hosting Hockey World Cup matches here in 2023. Sources said there is possibility of the Panposh Sports Hostel being upgraded as high performance centre in future.But the hostel needs Government land and beautification of the surroundings with a wide approach road for the purpose.
Rourkela ADM and Rourkela Smart City Ltd Chief Executive Officer Dr Yedula Vijay said the administration is working on all round development of the sports hostel.
PSH coach and in-charge AN Bihari said the Government has created adequate hockey infrastructure and in view of the upcoming mega event they are hopeful of further development of hostel.