Odisha to complete India's biggest hockey stadium in Rourkela by 2022

The Odisha government on Tuesday said it plans to complete the construction of India's proposed biggest-ever hockey stadium in Rourkela by 2020.

The stadium, work for which will start from April, will be completed within a year, a senior state government official said.

A high-level delegation led by Chief Secretary S C Mohapatra visited the proposed hockey stadium site in Rourkela and inspected the ground located in the premises of Biju Patnaik University of Technology (BPUT).

Of the 150 acres of land available in the BPUT campus, only 15 to 20 acres of land will be utilised for the construction of the stadium, Mohapatra said.

The Chief Secretary said besides the stadium, construction of parking bay and other infrastructure like accommodation facilities for the players will also begin in the same month.

The stadium will have facilities like floodlight, practice pitch, gym, hydrotherapy, media centre and stands for the spectators, he said.

The Chief Secretary said the proposed stadium will have a sitting capacity of 20,000.

Earlier in December last year, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has announced the construction of the stadium in Rourkela as Odisha is set to host the men's Hockey World Cup in 2023.

The World Cup matches will be played both at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar and also in the new stadium in Rourkela.