All decks have finally been cleared for building of a swimming pool of international standards at Emmekere near Mangaladevi Temple in the city.
The Department of Youth Empowerment and Sports has given its administrative approval towards realising the decade-long project at an estimated cost of Rs five crore.
PWD executive engineer (Mangaluru division) Ganesh Aralikatti who confirmed the development to DH, said, “The administrative approval was received a day ago, with counter signatures from authorities concerned (the procedure with two departments involved-sports and PWD in implementing the project).”
He added, “An estimate for Rs five crore has been finalised as against the Rs 12.5 crore submitted earlier. While a sum of Rs 87 lakh has been already released for the purpose, equal amount is expected to be released at the earliest towards facilitation of inviting tender. As is the norm, a third of the project cost has to be deposited with executing agency (PWD in this case) for inviting the bids.”
Main pool
The officer said, according to the plan, a main pool will be built to match international standards to host national and international-level tournaments. It has been decided to add jumping pool and refreshing pool in the later stages, but it depends on the funds.
“However,” the officer said, “It may take another one or two years in making it a reality, as the Department wants to leave no stone unturned in ensuring a quality work.”
Coastal Development Authority (CDA) secretary Pradeep D’Souza who holds additional charge as the deputy director of the Department of Youth Empowerment and Sports said, “Two acres of land identified at Emmekere, earlier in the jurisdiction of Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC), have been already taken into possession by the Department. Once the work is complete, it will prove advantageous for the Department in nurturing budding talents.”
Mangala stadium
The Mangala swimming pool near Lady Hill Circle, owned by the MCC, is the only government-run facility in the city. With the passing years, the three decade-old pool proved too small to cater to the growing demand, forcing the authorities concerned to plan the construction of a dedicated pool for sports enthusiasts.
In the existing scenario, swimming enthusiasts hone their skills in separate sessions at the pool, as the slots are divided between general public and women, beginning from 6 am till its closes door at 9.30 pm.
