PANAJI
The Goa government has spent Rs 439 crore on the development of infrastructure as preparation to host the proposed 36th National Games event. The event date is yet to be confirmed, even as it was postponed several occasions.
Sports Minister Manohar Ajgaonkar informed the assembly, “The state government has spent an amount of Rs 439 crore on the creation of infrastructure, as of date.”
Ajgaonkar said this in a written reply tabled on Friday. He also said that Rs 97.80 crore had already been sanctioned and released by the central government for the creation of infrastructure and another installment of Rs 69.85 crore was also expected.
“The state government shall be holding a consultative exercise with stakeholders to decide on a suitable period for hosting the National Games,” he said.
Delay in completing the requisite infra in Goa has been one of the reasons behind the delay in hosting the Games, the last edition of which was held in Jharkhand in 2011.
The Games were originally scheduled to be held in Goa in November 2016. They were later scheduled to begin from October 20 last year but were postponed again following the coronavirus outbreak.
