KARACHI, March 13 The complexion of city sports will change pretty soon when a number of high-profile projects initiated by the Sindh Sports Department will be completed to benefit some 15 million urbanites.

“Work on the Rs3 billion M. A. Jinnah Road Indoor Sports Complex, which was in doldrums for the last four decades, is about to kick-off under the supervision of national construction firm of Qatar with zero investment of Pakistan,” Sindh Sports Minister, Dr Mohammad Ali Shah said on Friday.

In an interview with Dawn, the orthopaedic surgeon said 60 per cent of the 17,085 square yards land will be used for creating sporting facilities while remaining 40 per cent will be commercialised which would help in maintaining the premises.

Highlighting the salient features, he said three floors will have parking facilities for 2,500 vehicles and the top will have a dome on the pattern of Sydney Opera House. The sports minister went on to say that the proposed project will have state of the art facilities and when completed, will be like a dream come true.

Dr Shah, who is also the president of the Sindh Olympic Association (SOA), spoke at length about creating sporting facilities in all nook and corners of the metropolis.

Continuing, he said, another women`s sports complex, to be named after Benazir Bhutto and having synthetic turf facilities for hockey and soccer as well as indoor games, will be built to cater their needs. “The work will start soon once the summary which has been moved to the chief minister for approval,” he remarked.

Shah, a member of the PCB Governing Board, said two international standard cricket grounds were coming up in North Karachi sector II-A and Shadab Ground, Orangi.

The grounds will be equipped with two turf wickets apiece, as many nets, offices, pavilion with high quality fixtures. He applauded Nazim of North Karachi Akhtar Hussain and Nazim of Orangi Abdul Haq for their support.

Referring to the cycling velodrome, which is being built on Madni ground in North Nazimabad, the sports minister said its PC-I have been approved by the federal government. To be constructed on five-and-a-half acre land, it will have all international facilities.

Recipient of three presidential awards — Pride of Performance (surgery), Tamgha-i-Imtiaz (sports) and Sitara-i-Imtiaz (public service) — Dr Shah disclosed that PC-I of constructing an exclusive hockey field in Block H, North Nazimabad, has been completed and his department has already received a sum of Rs8 million from the Sindh government.

He, however, regretted that the annual grant of his department was curtailed to Rs16 million of which Rs13 million goes into the salary of contractual employees.

The minister recalled how he spent money from his own pocket to send the Sindh contingent to the Inter-provincial Games in Peshawar before the government eventually released the estimated budget of Rs2.6 million.