Khelgaon: The Rs 504 crore mega sports complex at Hotwar will be ready for the 34th National Games. On offer is a 35,000-seat main stadium, separate stadiums for badminton, boxing, kabaddi, volleyball, tennis, table tennis, basketball, gymnastics and kho kho. An Olympic style swimming pool, a shooting range and vellodrome for cycle races will be there, too. Also, an amphitheatre and a 200-bed sports hostel in addition to a Games village with 1,200 flats to house visiting athletes.
MSquare: Ranchi is already talking about eight. But a realistic number for 2008 should be two. Construction of the two new multiplexes is on at Ratu Road and Main Road. Their inpiration: the success of the city’s first, Eylex. “Huge investments are being planned in this sector,” claims former president of the Federation of Jharkhand Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FJCCI) Arun Budhia.
JNNURM windfall: Over 50 civic bodies of the state (municipal corporations, municipalities and notified area committees) may get elected mayors and councillors in 2008 after 29 years. Under the JNNURM, Ranchi and Dhanbad would get central funding in the next four years only if state governments hold local polls and repeal the Urban Land Ceiling Act among others.
Fly high: Under the expansion plan of second rung airports across the country, Birsa Munda Airport is set for an upgrade. Airports Authority of India officials plan to acquire land adjacent to the airport and install Category II instrumental landing system.
Road revolution: Foundation work for the seventh phase of Ranchi Ring Road project has been laid and work is expected to progress rapidly this year with land being acquired. With Jusco taking over road widening on a larger scale, traffic congestion in Jamshedpur is also expected to decrease. Work on the ongoing Marine Drive project, connecting Adityapur and other parts of Jamshedpur, would also be completed by mid-2008.
Flyover: Commuters from Ashoknagar, Argoda Chowk and Kadru side can hope to take the flyover to reach Doranda. The slow pace of the project, jointly executed by the state government and Indian Railways, is expected to pick up speed.
P pangs: Parking and power problems would hopefully be eased. The stretch near Natraj Hotel in Bistupur and Fruit Market in Sakchi, Jamshedpur, would become parking zones. The Jusco project will accommodate over 150 trucks on the stretch near the Sunsunia bridge, close to the Tata Steel works at Burmamines. Residents of Jamshedpur living in the JSEB command areas like Adityapur would get Jusco power by March.
Study hub: The Multi-Purpose Examination hall in Jamshedpur Co-Operative College will be opened. The new academic block of Jamshedpur Womens’ College will also be ready. UGC has already given its consent to sanction about Rs 10 crore for the Jharkhand Institute of Basic Science (JIBS) near Ranchi College to boost research. The state has also cleared setting up two new universities — Neelambar Pitambar University in Palamau and Kolhan in Singhbhum-Kolhan.
Puja pleasure: The new Bari Maidan at Sakchi, which facilitates congregation of Durga Puja processions before immersion, would be made operational. The maidan had to be re-located due to Tata Steel’s ongoing expansion programme.
Old age home: Dignity Foundation, which works for the welfare of elderly people, has plans to come up with the first old age home in Jamshedpur by 2008.
