Two years after the announcement on the floor of the Assembly, the Tamil Nadu government has sanctioned Rs 261 crore for establishing a Global Sports City in Semmancheri with FIFA-standard football turf and facilities for events such as shooting, archery, water sports and skating through a government order (GO) issued by the Youth Welfare and Sports Department on October 27.

The government has sanctioned Rs 30 crore for the current financial year (2025-26) and Rs 231 crore for the next year.

During the 2023-24 budget session, the state finance minister had announced that Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) would set up a state-of-the-art facility with an eye on making Chennai a favoured destination for leading sports events.

According to the GO, the department had estimated a cost of Rs 301 crore for establishing the global city. The master plan for the 42.2-acre site features a lake and a water body for both rainwater conservation and the practice of water sports.

The list of sporting facilities proposed in the first phase includes water sports, shooting, archery, football, skateboarding, aquatics, and a multipurpose arena. The department has also proposed to construct outdoor and indoor stadiums. The facilities were finalised after a detailed assessment of Olympic sports and sports infrastructure available in Chennai.

The decision was taken after a detailed techno-economic feasibility report prepared by a consortium of consultants led by Knight Frank and Collage Design Private Ltd.

WRD to spend Rs 55cr on earth-filling work to prevent rainwater ingress in site

The GO also details the creation of a supporting infrastructure for the project with improvements in road access, flood control by developing drains, and shifting a high-tension electricity line.

The flood mitigation plan for the site includes enhancement of surrounding tank capacities, forming a new tank, construction of a peripheral earthen drain, and linking it to a swamp via a cut-and-cover structure.

In the first phase, 3.5 lakh cubic metres of earth will be filled in the site to prevent rainwater ingress which the Water Resources Department (WRD) will obtain from waterbody development and deepening of nearby lakes.

About Rs 55 crore will be spent by the WRD for these works. Incidentally, the union government has also proposed to create a Global Sports City in New Delhi after demolishing the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium. This is planned to be on the lines of sporting centres in Dubai and Australia.

(Written by Siddharth Prabhakar of The New Indian Express)