Odisha CM Patnaik inaugurates the state-of-the -art hockey stadium in Rourkela yesterday

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik inaugurated the state-of-the-art hockey stadium in Rourkela yesterday. Inaugurating the stadium, named after legendary freedom fighter Bhagwan Birsa Munda, the Chief Minister said that it will play a pivotal role in taking Indian hockey to global heights. The stadium has been built at a cost of 261 crore rupees in a record time of 15 months. Along with the stadium, he also inaugurated the Hockey World Cup village which will house the teams of the upcoming hockey World Cup.

It is reported that the Stadium, being billed as the World’s largest with a sitting capacity of twenty thousand spectators, will be one of the two venues where the upcoming hockey tournament will be played. The Hockey World Cup, being hosted by Odisha for the second time, will also be played in the iconic Kalinga Stadium in the capital Bhubaneswar. The prestigious Cup will be vied for by as many as 16 teams, including that of India in the tournament that begins on the 13th of this month till the 29th. While inaugurating the stadium, the Odisha Chief Minister announced one crore rupees each to the players of the Indian team, if it wins the coveted trophy. G C Dash AIR News Bhubaneswar.