₹70 cr Kaloor stadium revamp for Argentina visit under scrutiny as GCDA raises doubts

Kochi: The sponsor's ₹70-crore renovation claim for the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, made in connection with the proposed visit of the Argentina football team to Kerala, has come under scrutiny after the stadium’s owners questioned whether work worth that amount was actually carried out.

Nearly 10 months after it became clear that the Argentina team would not be visiting Kerala, the GCDA is yet to disclose how much was actually spent on the stadium.

K Chandran Pillai, who was GCDA chairman at the time, had said in October last year that a committee would be constituted to verify the ₹70-crore expenditure claim made by sponsor Reporter Broadcasting Company. However, it remains unclear whether the committee was ever constituted or what became of the proposed inquiry.

Questions over the expenditure have also intensified after it emerged that the GCDA had no direct agreement with the sponsor, despite handing over the stadium for renovation and arrangements related to the proposed match.

The GCDA had claimed that the renovation had transformed the Kaloor stadium into one of the country's best football venues. However, much of the work was reportedly cosmetic and focused largely on sprucing up the stadium ahead of the proposed Argentina fixture.

Asked about the expenditure claim, former GCDA chairman K Chandran Pillai said the sponsor should provide an explanation. "The sponsor should respond to this. The GCDA has no connection with this. We only complied with the directive to upgrade the quality of the stadium," he said.