GUWAHATI, Oct 2 � The long cherished dream of the cricketing buffs of the north-eastern region of a scientifically built cricket stadium will soon be a reality as the construction works of the Barsapara cricket stadium here are going on in war footing.
The Assam Cricket Association (ACA), under whose jurisdiction the project is being implemented, is hopeful that by early next year, it will be able to hold State level tournaments in the new stadium.
ACA secretary Bikash Baruah said with the help of the members of the State cricket body under the dynamic leadership of president and State Revenue Minister Gautam Roy the construction work is progressing in a satisfactory way.
The construction was started in the year 2006 and till date the works of the south stand are almost completed, while 70 per cent works of the north stand have been done. The foundation stone of the north stand was laid by TG Baruah, chairman of the Assam Tribune Group in August 2008.
Baruah said there was some defect in the original drawing made by Sashi Prabhu group and later it was rectified. For the defect in the drawing and excessive rain the construction work was hampered. �We are hopeful that by January 26 next year we will be able to organise local tournaments in the stadium,� he said.
Klorophyll (India) Sports Truf Technology and Construction is preparing the ground in a scientific way and the earth filling works are almost complete. Now they are levelling the ground even as undergoing soil testing of different levels.
Lloyd Insulation (India) and Vardhaman Precision Profiles and Tubes are working round the clock to complete the south and north stands respectively. Baruah further revealed that the capacity of the stadium has been increased to 60,000 from the original estimate of 50,000.
The stadium will have all modern facilities like players� dressing room, media centre, sports medicine centre, swimming pool, gym, massage room, floodlight system, etc apart from offices for various office-bearers.
The estimated cost of the project is Rs 130 crore and the State Government has already released Rs 95 lakh. A major portion of the budget will be made available by the BCCI. Baruah said as they have a good relationship with the BCCI officials they are releasing the fund phase by phase. The ACA secretary further revealed that they are planning to construct a four-star hotel in side the campus and preliminary discussions are on with the builders.
It may be mentioned that the stadium has been constructed as per the norms of the ICC and once it is completed, the State will get a world class cricket stadium in a beautiful location.
After RG Baruah, who had set up the Nehru Stadium with his brilliant foresight, ACA is the only non-government organisation to construct a full-fledged stadium in the city.
