On Saturday, September 23, Varanasi’s new cricket stadium received its startlingly symbolic foundational stone-laying from Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The stadium, which will be constructed on land worth Rs 121 crore, is expected to cost about Rs 330 crore.
With a nearly 30,000-person seating capacity, it will have distinctive design features such roof covers in the shape of crescents, floodlights in the form of tridents, and buildings that resemble bel leaves and a damru.
With the spectator gallery evoking the steps of Varanasi’s ghats, the stadium’s design tries to embody the spirit of Kashi. By the end of 2025, the stadium should be ready.
In addition to laying the cornerstone, PM Narendra Modi talked to a crowd of women’s rights advocates in Varanasi on the legislation passed by Parliament pertaining to women’s reservations. Vice President Rajiv Shukla, Secretary Jay Shah, and BCCI President Roger Binny all showed up to the occasion. After Kanpur and Lucknow, this would be the third international cricket stadium in Uttar Pradesh.
बाबा श्री विश्वनाथ जी की पावन नगरी काशी की अतुल्य विकास यात्रा में कल एक और स्वर्णिम अध्याय जुड़ने जा रहा है।
आदरणीय प्रधानमंत्री श्री @narendramodi जी कल वाराणसी में लगभग ₹451 करोड़ लागत के ‘अंतरराष्ट्रीय क्रिकेट स्टेडियम’ की आधारशिला रखेंगे।
साथ ही, काशी सांसद सांस्कृतिक…
— Yogi Adityanath (@myogiadityanath) September 22, 2023
According to sources, PM Narendra Modi flew into Varanasi and lay the cornerstone for the International Cricket Stadium at around 1:30 pm.
Ahead of the event, Yogi Adityanath, the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, who was also there, posted on social media to call it a “golden chapter in the history of Kashi.”
The concluding and award ceremony of the Cultural Mahotsav 2023 will also see the inauguration of 16 newly built Atal Residential Schools, which cost about 1,115 crore, according to the CM’s tweet.
India
