Union Home Ministry working on Sector 16 cricket stadium revamp

Animesh Singh/ Deepankar Sharda

New Delhi/Chandigarh, Dec 26

Reacting to a report by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs on demands for grants (2023-2024), which recommended a ‘revamp’ of the government-owned Sector 16 stadium for hosting international matches, the Home Ministry has submitted that the recommendations are noted and the matter has been taken up with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs and Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.

In March, the committee had recommended a revamp of the stadium. The arena, which is owned by the UT Administration and run by the UT Sports Department, is the lone cricket stadium in the city. The local association (Union Territory Cricket Association (UTCA), Chandigarh), has been a given a portion of a building on an annual lease of Rs 3,21,252 (excluding Rs 6,430 stamp duty) to promote cricket in the city. The lease was signed on February 21 this year. Earlier, the monthly office rent was Rs 300 from 2014 to 2021.

The Sector 16 stadium is already hosting BCCI domestic matches, after the local association got the affiliation in 2019. The last one-day international match was played between India and Australia on October 8, 2007. It had come 14 years after India had beaten England by five wickets at the venue in 1992-93. A total of two practice matches were also played between Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Punjab State-XI in 2006.

According to sources in the Home Ministry, after the UTCA got affiliation, demands have been raised to hold international matches at the stadium.

Who will host matches?

• The Sector 16 cricket stadium is perhaps the only arena of the nation, which is owned by the government and being used by the local cricket association simultaneously free-of-cost for conducting affiliated events.
• A majority of the BCCI state units have their stadiums on private land or on land issued by the state government.
• The BCCI is an autonomous, private organisation and claims to not receive any grants from the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
• If the recommendations (for revamp) get approved, the Sector 16 stadium will perhaps the first government-owned stadium to host international cricket matches along with the local association, under the administration’s rules and regulations.
• Notably, the ICC and BCCI allot hosting of international matches to state association, not to state government.