Uttar Pradesh is likely to get its third international stadium after a delegation from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) headed by vice-president Rajiv Shukla and secretary Jay Shah visited the Ganjari Area in Varanasi to review the proposal. According to rumours, the location has been approved by the team, and the project will begin soon when the BCCI completes the remaining paperwork.
On March 15, the BCCI delegation visited the planned site in Ganjari, led by secretary Jay Shah and vice-president Rajiv Shukla, who examined the site and spoke with the office-bearers of the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association (UPCA). According to sources, the project would cost the governing body around Rs. 300 crores, while the state government has already set aside Rs 120 crore to pay farmers for 31 acres of land.
“Shukla and Shah examined the site in the presence of UPCA office-bearers Yudhvir Singh and Uday Sinha, where 31 acres of land had already been acquired from farmers with a sum of Rs 120 crore provided by the UP government. The BCCI and UPCA officials were pleased with the site. The Uttar Pradesh government will lease the property in the Ganjari region to the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association (UPCA) for a period of 30 years.
The lease may be renewed for up to 90 years. The BCCI will finance the stadium building project, which would cost Rs 300 crore. The BCCI will pick a project management consultant and contractor for the development work for the planned stadium with 30,000 seating capacity via a tender procedure “The Times of India reported divisional commissioner Kaushal Raj Sharma as saying.
Although BCCI officials were pleased with the location for the state-of-the-art stadium, the board is still seeking for a business to carry out the project, with building set to begin within the next three months. The state currently has two international stadiums, Ekana Stadium in Lucknow and Green Park in Kanpur, but this will be the first international stadium in the Purvanchal area.
“This procedure might take up to two months to complete. As a result, the BCCI and UPCA authorities agreed to host the planned stadium’s foundation laying ceremony after the process was completed, so that construction on the project could begin immediately after the event “He went on to say.
