Panel to decide fee, maintenance for new indoor stadium

Mangaluru: With chief minister Siddaramaiah dedicating the new state-of-the-art indoor stadium at Urwa in the city, the department of youth empowerment and sports is awaiting a nod from the state to take over the facility from Mangaluru Smart City Limited (MSCL).

The indoor stadium, which meets national standards and specifically designed for badminton and kabaddi, was developed on 1.1 acres belonging to the department of youth empowerment and sports at a cost of Rs 36 crore by the MSCL. The foundation for the 1,300sqft sports complex with four floors was laid on November 2, 2021. According to officials, it may take at least a few weeks to make the new indoor stadium fully functional.

Pradeep D'Souza, deputy director of the youth empowerment and sports department said that the process of handing over the stadium is under way. "A stadium committee headed by the deputy commissioner will prepare an action plan regarding future maintenance after the handover process. The MSCL has already given a letter requesting the department of youth empowerment and sports to take over the stadium. A final clearance from the department is expected soon," he said.

Once the stadium is taken over, the department can either manage it directly by collecting necessary fees and rentals from the commercial outlets, or it can also be managed on an outsourced basis. However, a final decision in this regard will have to be taken by the govt through the department, he said.

There are five exclusive courts for badminton on the third floor. Meanwhile, the ground floor has six badminton courts, which include three interchangeable kabaddi courts. While the stadium has space to park 60 four-wheelers and 100 two-wheelers, the building also has 34 commercial outlets for the purpose of generating income to meet its maintenance cost. Besides badminton and kabaddi courts, the complex also has space for an administrative office, separate washrooms and changing rooms for men and women, locker rooms, lifts, a gymnasium, dormitory facility, and cafeteria. While the first floor has a seating capacity of 400 for spectators, the same number of people can be accommodated on the fourth floor, D'Souza said.