Northeast's largest multipurpose indoor stadium being built in Shillong: Meghalaya CM

Shillong, April 19 (IANS) Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma on Wednesday said that a multipurpose indoor stadium is being constructed in Shillong and it would be the largest multipurpose indoor stadium in the northeastern region.

He said that the indoor stadium would have facilities for different disciplines such as basketball, squash, badminton, table tennis, volleyball among others.

Sangma on Wednesday inspected the ongoing renovation, upgradation and expansion of the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium at Polo ground here. The renovated stadium would include a football ground with natural grass turf and also a state of the art facility for hosting track and field events.

Laying emphasis on the quality of the construction, he said that highest quality standards are being maintained and once ready it would be fit to host international sporting events.

According to the Chief Minister the renovated stadium would have a seating capacity of close to 30,000 and would be completed by December this year.

Expressing his happiness at the progress of the work, the Chief Minister was optimistic that once the state of the art facilities are completed it will provide an opportunity for the youth of the state to excel in the respective field and sporting disciplines.

During his visit, he also inspected the football field located at first ground Polo. Necessary upgradation and expansion is being carried out to improve the ground with laying of an artificial turf and construction of new stands.

Noting that the youth of the state are passionate about football, the Chief Minister said that the government is in the process to identify local practice grounds across the state and take steps to upgrade and improve the selected grounds for the benefit of football lovers.

"We are already surveying Shillong city and we have identified five locations where we can potentially lay astro turf. With this intervention we are expecting that a large number of astro turf football grounds will come up, where our youth can practise, have matches....That will be one of the steps towards ensuring that we are able to bring out the talent and give the opportunity for the youth who are passionate about football," he said.