A Lifetime Experience for students ahead of Hockey World Cup at Birsa Munda Stadium in Rourkela

Bhubaneswar: The SC/ST Development Department, along with the Department of Sports and Youth Services organised an exposure trip for the 133 students of Tapovan High School, Bhubaneswar to experience the newly inaugurated Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium in Rourkela.

The students got a unique opportunity to arrive in a special charter flight that landed directly at the Rourkela airbase.

“Although these students are studying in Bhubaneswar, they come from small villages and belong to different tribal areas. Sitting in an aircraft and watching how villages look from above was a memorable and surreal experience for them,” said District Welfare Officer PM Pradhan who received them at the airport. Pradhan revealed that they were given a tour of the Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium. “They sat inside the stadium to get a feel of the facility and then interacted with Hockey India officials who explained to them the aspects of the game and the stadium,” he informed.

After the stadium visit, they were given a tour of the city and shown how Rourkela had been lit up and transformed. “They were taken to IG Park, the Hockey Chowk, and various attractive installations that have been decorated for the event which begins on January 13,” he further added.

The Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium will host two matches on Friday, where England will take on Wales, and home team India will take on Spain.