SHILLONG, July 11: The state government has managed to convince migrant workers, engaged in the renovation of JN Stadium here for the Durand Cup, to stay back.
Some of them were assaulted, allegedly by the members of the Khasi Students’ Union (KSU) on Saturday.
The state is preparing to host the mega football tournament. Shillong will host six matches. To fine-tune the preparations, Defence authorities and the state government held a meeting on Thursday.
The preparations were affected after some workers were assaulted by the KSU members who had gone to the JN Stadium to check the documents of the workers.
Commissioner and Secretary of Sports & Youth Affairs, Vijay Kumar D said the government has managed to convince the workers to stay back. He said the Chief Secretary held a meeting with the Director General of Police on the matter.
Admitting that the workers are feeling insecure, he added that the government cannot entertain any delays and the next 10 days are important.
The JN Stadium will be reopened on August 2, the day the first match of the tournament will be played.
Teams like Shillong Lajong FC, Goa FC, Hyderabad FC and Nepal will play the matches in Shillong. The sale of tickets will start from Friday. The price will range from Rs 100-500, according to seating, visibility and various other considerations.
With the renovation of the stadium, close to 20,000 people can watch the actions live. The teams will do their practice in two grounds of NEHU, Kumar said.
According to him, 95% of the work is completed and the remaining last-minute activities are going on. Works like creating seating in all the bowls and other works are done.
The Defence authorities and the state government inspected the site on Thursday. The issue of traffic during the event was also discussed in the meeting.
The teams are expected to be put up at the two five-star hotels in the city. Transportation has been arranged to take them to the stadium and the NEHU campus.
