City in pole position for CWG with eye on 2036 Olympics

Ahmedabad: Eight years after earning the Unesco tag as India's first World Heritage City, Ahmedabad is chasing another global title — host of the 2030 Commonwealth Games (CWG). On Wednesday, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), at its Special General Meeting, placed the city among the top contenders — a move widely seen as a dress rehearsal for the bigger prize: the 2036 Olympics.Ahmedabad's bid is anchored by the Rs 6,000-crore Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Sports Enclave — a 236-acre, Olympic-grade complex being developed through a state–AUDA public-private partnership. Scheduled for completion in 2029, it will feature the Narendra Modi Stadium (the world's largest cricket venue), a 50,000-seat football stadium, an 18,000-seat indoor arena, a 12,000-seat aquatics centre, an athletes' village, plus hotels and commercial hubs. Supporting facilities include the Naranpura Sports Complex and a network of mini-sports centres across city zones, with Rs 125 crore earmarked for grassroots infrastructure in Naroda, Ghuma, and beyond.A senior sports department official said Gujarat had conveyed its CWG intent to Chris Jenkins OBE, then president of Commonwealth Sport, during his Jan 2025 visit — a proposal later backed by the union ministry of youth affairs and sports.Infrastructure upgrades are keeping pace with the bid. The Rs 3,130-crore integrated terminal at Sardar Vallabhbhai International (SVPI) Airport — set to double passenger capacity before 2030 — aligns with CWG and Olympic timelines. Metro extensions, BRTS upgrades, and a multi-modal transport hub are also planned. The hospitality sector is expanding rapidly. The Sabarmati Riverfront Development Corporation Ltd (SRFDCL) has cleared a 17-storey hotel and a Rs 792.5 crore Convention, Cultural and Business Centre near Paldi, while global hotel brands are increasing their presence along Sindhu Bhavan Road and in GIFT City.The city's confidence draws on its record of hosting marquee events — from the ICC World Cup final to Vibrant Gujarat Summits and the sold-out Coldplay concert in Jan 2025. Gujarat is also eyeing the 2027 Women's Volleyball World Championship and the World Military Games to further burnish its credentials.Officials said the plan is to stage a "full-fledged Games" featuring medal-rich sports like shooting, wrestling, and badminton, alongside indigenous disciplines such as kabaddi and kho kho.Ahmedabad's CWG blueprint takes cues from Birmingham 2022's cost-effective delivery and Euro 70-million local reinvestment, including a jobs and skills academy that trained over 20,000 people. The city's version will be guided by an Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIMA) impact study to ensure transparency and sustainability.Commissioned by the Gujarat Sports Infrastructure Development Company (GSIDC Ltd), and to be conducted over the next six months, the studies aim to evaluate the potential impacts on Ahmedabad and Gujarat, ensuring alignment with global sustainability standards.The studies will focus on identifying and standardizing relevant environmental metrics, design of a stakeholder engagement framework for environmental assessment, and assessment of carbon emissions associated with the Games.

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