BHUBANESWAR: VK Pandian, secretary to chief minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday visited Puri stadium project site to oversee the progress of works and directed to expedite the works for early completion.
As the holy town of Puri has a strong culture of akhadas and there is lot of scope for development of sports like wrestling, weightlifting, body building, yoga, gymnastics and boxing, Pandian asked officials to explore regarding supporting the akhadas for sports development.
He also directed that residential cricket academy and wrestling academy to be established in the new sports complex.
Development of sports infrastructure in Puri is part of the Rs 3,208 crore ABADHA (Augmentation of Basic Amenities and Development of Heritage and Architecture) plan that aims to transform Puri into a world class heritage city. The new sports complex is being constructed with overall budget of Rs 40 crore.
The complex will mainly have the cricket stadium with practice nets and other facilities which will enable organising first-class cricket matches including Ranji Trophy. The complex will also have 50-m swimming pool, multi-purpose indoor hall with facilities for boxing, wrestling, table tennis and gymnasium and 100-seated sports hostel.