Bhubaneswar: The proposed Birsa Munda International Hockey Stadium at Rourkela in Sundargarh district will be ready by July 2022, Chief Secretary SC Mahapatra said Wednesday.
A high-level delegation of state government officials led by Mahapatra visited Rourkela, Wednesday to review various development works.
Secretary (5T) VK Pandian, National Health Mission (NHM) director Shalini Pandit and Sports Secretary R Vineel Krishna accompanied him.
“Work is going on in full swing for the hockey stadium where some matches of the 2023 Men’s Hockey World Cup will be played. Construction of parking space and dormitories for players is also progressing smoothly. We have set the target to complete the entire work by July 2022,” Mahapatra said.
“The civil work of the Biju Patnaik Indoor Stadium in Panposh has reached the last stage and it will be operational soon. There will be three indoor badminton courts and three outdoor tennis courts. A stateof-the-art gym is also being set up for the players,” informed Mahapatra.
The stadium with a seating capacity of 20,000-plus will be the largest hockey stadium in India. It will co-host some matches of the 2023 World Cup along with the Kalinga Stadium here.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had laid the foundation stone in February 2021 for the stadium. The team also reviewed the Rourkela airport expansion project.
The Rourkela airport expansion project has been taken up by the Airport Authority of India (AAI). The terminal building will also be constructed there by May 2022, Mahapatra told the media.
PNN