Improve sports infra in city, Mayor, MLA urge Siddaramaiah

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, on Tuesday, reacted positively to the demands raised by Mayor B L Bhyrappa and MLA Vasu to develop basic infrastructure for sports in Mysuru.

Bhyrappa, in his address, demanded three new stadiums in different locations as the city was growing by leaps and bounds beyond the outer ring road (ORR).

Bhyrappa said, though there was one stadium, Chamundi Vihar, at Nazarbad, and another of the University of Mysore, outsiders were not allowed to practice there.To encourage people to take up sports, stadia at different parts of the city are essential, he added.

Bhyrappa exhorted the chief minister to allocate Rs 50 crore directly or indirectly to Mysuru City Corporation (MCC).

Earlier, Chamaraja MLA Vasu urged the chief minister to effect an amendment to the Urban Development Act to facilitate Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) to reserve lands in every new layout for a sports ground. Or else, exclusive funds should be allocated for sports in the budget or a provision should be made to divert education cess to take up sports-related activities.

Vasu highlighted that most of the coaches in Karnataka Sports Authority were working on contract basis. It would be better to encourage sports on the lines of other States like Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, he added.