Kollam International Hockey Stadium

International Hockey Stadium, Kollam

Astro Turf Hockey Stadium, Kollam
Full name	International Astro Turf Hockey Stadium and Sports Complex, Asramam, Kollam
Location	Asramam, City of Kollam(Quilon)
Owner	Government of Kerala
Capacity	5,000[1]
Surface	Astro Turf
Construction
Opened	27th January 2015
Construction cost	Rs. 17.55 Crores[2] (US$ 2.84 Million)
Architect	C T Ramanathan Infrastructure Private Ltd.

The International Astro Turf Hockey Stadium is an exclusive hockey stadium situated at the city of Kollam, first of its kind in Kerala state, with a nominal capacity of around 5,000 seats.^[3]

The stadium is located at an area which was formerly known as Depot Maidan within the Asramam Government property complex, less than 500 meters from the Chinnakada traffic circle. The Depot Maidan lies on the way to the Yatri Nivas Hotel from Chinnakada and was serving as a timber depot of the Forest Department before.^[4]

The International Hockey Stadium in Kollam is equipped with state of the art astro turf, is a part of a select group of arenas in the country that can host international hockey matches along the likes of New Delhi, Bangalore, Patiala and Ranchi. The stadium is in picturesque surroundings with Ashtamudi Lake amid a lot of greenery. It is one of the most beautiful hockey grounds in the world.^[5] National Games Secretariat was overseeing the works of the stadium as part of National Games-2015.^[6][7]

View of stadium building from outside

History

National Games-2015 of India had been held on Kerala. As part of that, Government of Kerala have facilitated 29 venues in the state spread over Trivandrum, Kollam, Kochi, Thrissur, Kozhikode and Alappuzha cities.^[8][9] Kollam city & district are very famous for its players and the passion for the game. So for supporting the city's passion towards Hockey, Government of Kerala had decided to build a most modern astro turf hockey stadium within the city. Administrative sanction and construction works for the stadium has been started on 2005, in a 4.78 acres plot for a cost of Rs. 9 crores. M. Vijayakumar, the then Sports Minister of Kerala had laid the foundation stone for the stadium on 20 January 2005.^[10]

Dimensions

• Total plot area - 1.86 Hectare
• Area of the stadium - 16,000 sqft
• Main Play area - 6,570 sqft
• Practicing area - 2,680 sqft

Facilities

Kollam city as a venue of National Games-2015

Kollam city became a part of 2015 National Games of India. 2 main events - Hockey, Rugby sevens had been held at 2 different stadiums in the city^[11] Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium^[12] and International Hockey Stadium.^[13] The International Hockey Stadium was named as Dhyan Chand Plaza during the time of National Games.

SAF Games 2015

The Indian Olympic Association(IOA) has taken a decision to conduct 12th South Asian Games(SAF Games) in Trivandrum, Kollam and Alappuzha venues in Kerala. The astro turff international hockey stadium would become one of the venues of South Asian Games. Athletes from India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Afghanistan, Maldives, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan will be participating in the event.^[14]

References

External links

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