Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of an international cricket stadium at Ganjari in Rajatalab area of his parliamentary constituency Varanasi on Saturday in the presence of a galaxy of cricket players and office-bearers of the Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI).
The stadium will be developed at a cost of about Rs 450 crore and spread across an area of more than 30 acres and will have a seating capacity of 30,000 which can be extended up to 40,000 in the future.
It was a hectic one-day visit for the prime minister, who, after laying the foundation stone of the stadium, met women at a programme organised by the latter at Sampurnanand Sanskrit University (SSU) grounds to greet him for presenting Nari Shakti Vandana Adhiniyam Bill in the special session held at the new parliament building recently.
“It was due to the strength of the women, even those who were opposing the women’s reservation bill for decades, supported it and passed it with record votes,” he said.
Later, the prime minister inaugurated 16 Atal Residential Schools constructed at a cost of Rs 1,115 crore and met some students of the school studying in the Varanasi campus at Karsada at Rudraksh International Convention Centre, Sigra. He said that for the welfare of construction workers every state had a fund but many used it for their vote politics and praised Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for utilising the same for shaping the future of poor children.
Earlier, addressing the gathering at a public meeting at Ganjari, the prime minister expressed delight in getting the opportunity to visit Varanasi once again and remarked that the joy of this city was beyond words.
“I am visiting Kashi on a day, exactly one month after India reached the Shiv Shakti point on the moon where Chandrayaan landed on the 23rd of last month. One place of Shiv Shakti is on the moon while the other one is in Kashi,” the prime minister remarked, as he congratulated everyone for this momentous feat.
Wooing the hearts of local people, Modi also noted the significance of the venue which is at the intersection of the route to Mata Vindhyavasini and near village Motikot, the place from which Lokbandhu Raj Narain hailed.
He said that the design of the stadium dedicated to Lord Mahadev had instilled a feeling of pride among the citizens of Kashi. “The stadium would witness great cricket matches while the young athletes would get an opportunity to train at a stadium with international standards and this will greatly benefit the citizens of Kashi,” he added.
The prime minister said that through cricket, the world was getting linked with India and many new countries were playing cricket leading to a greater number of matches. He said that the new stadium in Varanasi would cater to the rising demand for stadiums in the coming years.
Underlying that the development of sports infrastructure of such scale not only had a positive effect on sports but also had a positive impact on the regional economy, he said that such developments attracted more visitors which greatly benefitted sectors such as hotels, eateries, rickshaws and auto drivers as well as boatmen on the region. He said that it also had a positive effect on sports coaching and management institutions thereby paving the way for youth to venture into sports startups. He also touched upon physiotherapy courses and said that a new sports industry was expected to shape up in Varanasi in the coming days.
Modi also highlighted the changing attitude towards sports among parents.
“Now the mood of the nation is ‘Jo khelega wo hi khilega’ (one who will play will blossom).” He recounted his recent visit to Shahdol in Madhya Pradesh and his interaction with youth in a tribal village there and remembered the local pride for the ‘Mini Brazil’ there and their deep love for football.
The prime minister also described the change in Kashi towards sports. He said that the effort was to provide world-level sports facilities to the youth of Kashi. “That is why, along with this stadium, Rs 400 crore is being spent on Sigra stadium where facilities are being developed for more than 50 sports. This is going to be the first multi-sports complex which will be divyang-friendly,” he said.
The prime minister emphasised that along with the new construction, old systems were being improved as well.
In the beginning, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath welcomed the prime minister. The function was also attended by BCCI president Roger Binny, secretary Jay Shah, vice-president Rajeev Shukla, former cricket players Sachin Tendulkar, Sunil Gavaskar, Ravi Shastri, Kapil Dev, Dilip Vengsarkar, Madan Lal, Gundappa Viswanath and Gopal Sharma, and several UP ministers.