New Delhi: Delhi Lt Governor V K Saxena on Saturday laid the foundation stone of a world-class international cricket-cum-football stadium with 30,000 seating capacity in Dwarka.
The arena, spread over 51 acres in the sub-city's Sector 19 B, will be constructed on a public-private-partnership basis, officials said.
The LG laid the foundation stone of an integrated multi-sports arena on the occasion of 'Sewa Diwas' which is being celebrated to mark 72nd birthday of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The total estimated cost of the project is Rs 350 crore and the completion time is of three years, the DDA said in a statement. West Delhi MP Parvesh Sahib Singh and top DDA officials were present on the occasion, it said.
The LG said once the facility is completed will provide world-class sports infrastructure, with a stadium having a seating capacity of 30,000.
In addition, there will be indoor multi-sports facilities with a seating capacity of 2,000, sports club with minimum 3,000 membership, other facilities for sports such as swimming, tennis, badminton, squash, table tennis, he said.
The facilities will also be available to the local community on a "pay and play basis". This project, apart from changing the face of Dwarka sub-city, will also promote sporting events in the capital, Saxena said.
"Thanks to the PM's initiatives and comprehensive approach towards sports, the performance of Indian sportsmen at international events had substantially improved during the last 7-8 years.
"One of the reasons is that our prime minister has put special emphasis on sports and had urged countrymen to participate in sporting events, which has increased our medal tally in international events," the statement quoting Saxena said.
The project is being taken up by Omaxe company through PPP on design, finance, operate and transfer model with a concession period of 30 years, the DDA said. The area of sports facility will be 6.4 lakh sq ft.
Besides, it will have 3.45 lakh sq ft of commercial facilities, including retail, hotel, hospitality, commercial office space, and supporting facilities for sports will be provided for a 99-year lease on design, finance, operate and transfer model, the statement said. At present, the DDA has 15 sports complexes, three mini-sports complexes, two public golf courses, 17 swimming pools and 40 multi-gyms. India's first public golf course Qutab Golf Course is also run by the DDA, it said.
The DDA is also developing centres of excellence in many sports like wrestling, weight lifting, boxing, judo, kabaddi, tennis, shooting, football, and hockey in various sectors of Dwarka as well as centre of excellence in aquatics at Sector 33, Rohini, it said.