Naveen Seeks Cooperation of All Parties to Make Hockey World Cup 2023 a Grand Success 

CMs of All States to Be Invited for Hockey World Cup 2023

Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday sought cooperation of all political parties for successful hosting of Odisha Men’s Hockey World Cup 2023 to be held in Bhubaneswar and Rourkela next month.

Presiding over an all-party meeting at the Lok Seva Bhawan Convention Centre, Naveen announced that Chief Ministers of all States will be invited to participate in the Hockey World Cup 2023 programme.

The Odisha CM thanked the Government of India, especially Prime Minister Narendra Modi for extending cooperation in preparations of the mega sporting event in the State.

Requesting all parties to work together to make the World Cup Hockey a grand success, the Chief Minister said that it is not only the honor of Odisha but also the entire nation to host the Hockey World Cup.

The leaders of various political parties participated in the discussion and lauded the efforts of the State Government towards the development of sports, stating that hosting the World Cup for the second consecutive time has enhanced the reputation of Odisha across the globe.

Attending the meeting, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan praised the preparations of the State Government for the mega sporting event. In his opinion, the Union Minister said everyone should work together so that 100 Olympians can come out of Odisha on the occasion of the centenary celebration of the formation of a separate Odisha province in 2036.

The Union Minister also suggested for inclusion of rare event like hosting Hockey World Cup twice in a row in the school curriculum, involving citizens for the cleanliness of both Bhubaneswar-Rourkela, promoting local sports and branding the Rourkela-Bhubaneswar railway for hockey etc. He also said that Center would provide all kinds of support.

Participating in the discussion, the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) Leader Narasingha Mishra has proposed to build hockey stadiums in all the districts of the State.

Odisha Congress Vice President Santosh Singh Saluja, BJD Vice Presidents Prasanna Acharya and Devi Prasad Mishra, BJD Organizational Secretary Pranab Prakash Das, BJP State President Samir Mohanty and leaders from various political parties attended the meeting.

Sports Minister Tusharkanti Behera coordinated the meeting.