BENGALURU: The
Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike
has opened a
sports arena
built to international specifications in
Vidyaranyapura
, north Bengaluru. It includes a swimming pool, indoor stadium and a gym. The Rs 16-crore complex is spread over 18 acres and took more than seven years to be completed. This is the first playground added by the civic agency in recent times to the city, where youngsters scramble for space to play.
BBMP
officials said though the project was initiated in 2013 for an estimated cost of Rs 6 crore, there was no progress for two years as approvals were delayed. "Construction began only in 2016 and the project was to be completed within a year. But it was delayed due to transfer of engineers. In a span of two years, four executive engineers and two assistant executive engineers were shifted contributing to the delay," said a senior BBMP official.
A
sports
fest held on Sunday to celebrate the sports arena was inaugurated by mayor Goutham Kumar and former minister and Byatarayanapura MLA Krishna Byregowda. While the pool for adults is 50 metres long and 25 metres wide, for kids it's 6x4 metres. There is a viewers' gallery that can accommodate up to 400 persons. The indoor sports stadium includes a gym area which can hold 100 people, a yoga centre, two aerobics halls, two taekwondo halls, a table tennis hall and eight badminton courts.
"Everybody talks about sports but it is also important to provide a sports arena for children to actively participate in it. The arena allows everybody, from toddlers to senior citizens, to use the sports complex and stay healthy," Krishna Byregowda told TOI.
Goutham Kumar said, "Given the fact that Bengalureans are increasingly becoming health conscious and there is a shortage of playgrounds, this arena will benefit residents of Vidyaranyapura and adjoining areas. We should add many such complexes in the city."
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