Rourkela: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday laid the foundation stone of the hockey stadium in the city amid tight security with police taking hundreds of BJP supporters into custody for staging protest ahead of the CM’s visit.
Announcing that the Rourkela stadium will be named after freedom fighter Birsa Munda, the chief minister said it will be the largest hockey stadium in the country with a seating capacity of 20,000.
The Stadium site is located within the sprawling campus of Biju Patnaik University of Technology, one of the premier technical institutes of the state. It will be a new benchmark in global stadium design for hockey and offering one of the finest spectator experiences in the world.
The stadium will be a model of green, functional, cost effective design. Designed to deliver the best match day atmospheres in the world, each seat will have uninterrupted sightlines and the spectators will be closer to the pitch than at any other hockey stadium in the world.
The stadium, proposed to be built within a year, and the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar will jointly host the Men’s Hockey World Cup-2023.
Recalling the close association of legendary leader Biju Patnaik with Rourkela city, he said the former chief minister was instrumental in setting up the steel plant and NIT.
Terming Rourkela as the ‘City of Hopes’, he said besides the people of Sundargarh district, those from outside also depend on the city for livelihood.
He also spoke on the rich tribal culture in the district and reiterated the demand for inclusion of Mundari and Ho languages in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution.
The Chief Minister during his one-day visit to the district also launched several projects worth Rs 4915 crore. The projects related to drinking water (Rs 1611 crore), irrigation (Rs 320 cr), health services (Rs 111 cr), roads & bridges (Rs 1060 cr), education (Rs 366 cr), sanitation (Rs 250 cr), livelihood (Rs 216 cr) and electricity (Rs 38 cr).
Earlier, the police arrested the BJP workers who had congregated near Jubuli Park to protest Naveen’s visit to the district.
Also Read: BJP Workers Detained Ahead Of Odisha CM’s Visit To Rourkela
