In a major boost for cricket development in Odisha, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today announced the redevelopment of the historic Barabati Stadium and laid foundation stone for the redevelopment of the VSS Stadium in Sambalpur.  

According to a press release from the office of the Chief Minister, Barabati Stadium will be redeveloped into a world-class sports complex with all the modern facilities, in partnership with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Odisha Cricket Association (OCA) and corporates.

At the same time, considering the legacy of the stadium, the iconic clock tower will be conserved as a heritage structure. The VSS Stadium will be expanded and developed with the best cricket facilities for the cricketers in the region.

The Chief Minister also inaugurated cricket facilities at Berhampur Sports Complex, Shree Jagannath Cricket Stadium and Womens Cricket Academy at Puri, sports complex at Jajpur, ?cricket ground at Jharsuguda and 41 cricket academies developed across state by OCA. He announced that the stadium in Berhampur will be named as Mahatma Gandhi Cricket Stadium, in memory of the visit of Gandhiji to this place during the freedom movement.

He also announced that an integrated sports complex will be created at Sitalapalli, Berhampur which will include facilities for athletics, football, cricket, indoor stadium etc to cater to the needs of the sportspersons in the region.

The Chief Minister inaugurated the Ganjam Weightlifting Academy along with the 200-seated hostel making it the largest weightlifting training facility in the country. He said it is a tribute to the popularity of weightlifting in Ganjam, which produced so many weightlifters.

Several sports infrastructure in Jajpur namely Kusuma Complex Swimming Pool, Hockey Training Centre, a multipurpose indoor stadium, athletic track, football ground etc were inaugurated. While foundation stone was laid for the rugby ground and cricket grounds along with the hostel.

On this occasion, the Chief Minister also laid the foundation stone for integrated sports complexes at Bargarh and Dhenkanal, which includes various facilities like athletic tracks, swimming pools, football grounds, cricket ground etc. The program was conducted across 50 venues over video conferencing. OCA president Pranab Prakash Das, Sports Minister Tushar Kanti Behera participated in the program at Barabati Stadium.