VARANASI: On Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the cornerstone for an international cricket stadium in Varanasi, his home district. The event was attended by former Indian cricketers Sachin Tendulkar and Ravi Shastri, BCCI President Roger Binny, Vice-President Rajiv Shukla, and Secretary Jay Shah. Yogi Adityanath, the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, also attended the event. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will spend Rs 330 crore on building the stadium, according to the Uttar Pradesh government, which claimed to have spent Rs 121 crore on land acquisition. The stadium, which will be constructed close to the Ring Road in Rajatalab, is anticipated to be finished by December 2025. The stadium’s spectator gallery would imitate the Varanasi ghats’ steps. After Kanpur and Lucknow, this would be Uttar Pradesh’s third international cricket arena.
