According to an official, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has invited bids for the construction of a sports complex in the Naranpura area at a cost of Rs 584 crore. Municipal Commissioner Mukesh Kumar said the corporation had floated a tender for the “proposed international sports complex” on Monday and earmarked five empty plots in Naranpura for it.
The sports complex will be built under the Centre’s “Khelo India” scheme, according to the bid document shared by the AMC.
The news comes just days after an international consultancy firm presented Gujarat Chief Secretary Pankaj Kumar with a report on infrastructure gaps and a roadmap for hosting the 2036 Olympics in Ahmedabad and other parts of Gujarat.
The AMC announced in August that the Union Ministry of Finance had given administrative approval for the upcoming sports complex, which will cost Rs 584 crore to construct.
According to the AMC, the sports complex will be built to international standards on nearly 80,000 square metres of land behind Vardan Tower in Naranpura, and the venue will be able to host both national and international tournaments.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced the sports complex in February at an event to commemorate the opening of the Narendra Modi stadium and the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Sports Enclave in the city’s Motera neighbourhood.
According to the press release, the facility will include an aquatic complex, a community sports centre, a centre for sports excellence, an indoor multi-sports arena, a Fit India zone, and an outdoor sports area.
The aquatic complex will feature a FINA-approved competition-size swimming pool and diving pool, as well as seating for 1,500 spectators.
According to the announcement, the community sports centre will include a multipurpose hall, six badminton courts, six table tennis courts, six carrom tables, nine chess tables, and ten snooker and billiards tables.
Apart from that, the Centre of Excellence will have two basketball courts, two volleyball courts, or eight badminton courts at any given time, as well as a multipurpose hall for taekwondo, kabaddi, wrestling, and table tennis training and warm-ups.
The FIT India Zone will include a seating area for senior citizens, a skating rink, and kabbadi and kho-kho playgrounds. The outdoor facility will include six tennis courts, a basketball court, and a volleyball court, according to the press release.
The upcoming sports complex will be available to the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports and Sports Authority of India (SAI) free of cost, and SAI may run the Centre of Excellence in the sports complex, the civic body has stated.