Patna: Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary on Saturday instructed officials to complete the international cricket stadium under construction at Rajgir by December 31. The directive was issued during a review meeting of the sports department held at Lok Seva Awas.
Multi-Sport Infrastructure Push
Samrat announced that Bihar will develop separate international-level stadiums for different sports at the Dumri Sports Complex in Patna district, signaling a major push to strengthen multi-sport infrastructure in the state.
Grassroots Sports Grounds
Reviewing progress on grassroots sports infrastructure, he noted that sports grounds have been completed in 4,700 of Bihar's 8,053 gram panchayats, taking the total number of grounds to 5,266. He urged officials to complete the remaining grounds at the earliest and directed that gram panchayat sports grounds be developed through the VB-G RAM G (Viksit Bharat-Guarantee for Rozgar and Aajeevika Mission, Grameen) programme.
Moin-ul-Haq Stadium Redevelopment
The Chief Minister also stressed the need to expedite the redevelopment of Patna's Moin-ul-Haq Stadium. He asked the department to coordinate with the BCCI and BCA to speed up the project. Additionally, he instructed officials to improve road and transport connectivity to the stadium to prevent crowd-management issues during major sporting events.
Olympic-Level Facilities and Player Incentives
Reiterating the government's broader sports agenda, Samrat said Bihar aims to provide Olympic-level facilities for international sports and that world-class infrastructure is being developed in phases. He mentioned that young and talented players are being honored for achievements at the national level and encouraged through incentives, including the 'Medal Lao Naukri Pao' scheme.
Bihar Sports University and District Facilities
Reviewing Bihar Sports University at Rajgir, Samrat asked officials to prioritize courses with strong potential for innovation, national utility, and employment generation. He also called for faster construction of district-level sports buildings-cum-gymnasiums and asked officials to assess the feasibility of operating and maintaining them through a public-private partnership (PPP) model.
Sports department secretary Vinod Singh Gunjiyal presented updates on infrastructure projects, implementation of schemes, facilities for players, recognition measures, and the department's future action plan.
