40 mini stadiums to be opened by Feb 2026: Udhayanidhi
Madurai: Deputy chief minister
Udhayanidhi Stalin
announced on Monday that 40 chief minister's
mini sports stadiums
will be completed across the state by Feb 2026.
Udhayanidhi was speaking at the Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai after inaugurating multiple modern
sports infrastructure projects
across the state and distributing state-level sports awards.
Earlier, he laid foundation for 18 mini stadiums across districts including Madurai, Thanjavur, Tirunelveli, Kancheepuram, Salem, Dharmapuri, and Tirupur at a total cost of Rs 54 crore — each being built at Rs 3 crore.
He inaugurated modernised infrastructure at three district sports complexes: a synthetic track and natural turf football field set up at Rs 7 crore in Thanjavur; upgraded facilities at Rs 8.25 crore in Madurai; and a hockey stadium at Rs 1.48 crore in Tirunelveli. He threw open Traditional Martial Arts Training and Research Centre established at Rs 11.83 lakh in Kanyakumari to promote and preserve India's indigenous martial art forms. He also opened STAR (Sports Talent and Recognition Academy) at all district sports offices, set up at a total cost of Rs 3.68 crore.
Udhayanidhi also presented the
Chief Minister's State Sports Awards
for 2020-24 to 39 outstanding sportspersons, coaches, physical education teachers, referees, donors, and coordinators. Among them, 31 received Rs 1 lakh cash awards. Additionally, financial assistance of Rs 8.99 lakh was handed over to 21 retired sportspersons and the families of five deceased beneficiaries.
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