The façade of the Indoor Cricket Academy built by the BCCI at the Nagaland Cricket Association Stadium, in Sovima, Chümoukedima, and the training installations within. (Photo courtesy: Nagaland Cricket Association)
PM Modi inaugurates all, one in Nagaland
Morung Express News
Dimapur | April 28
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated 6 indoor cricket training centres across 6 states, including in Nagaland, in the north-east (NE). The PM inaugurated the facilities, funded by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), remotely during a public function in Gangtok, on April 28, marking the 50th anniversary of the formation of Sikkim as the 22nd state of India.
The one for Nagaland— Indoor Cricket Academy, located in Sovima, Chümoukedima, is integrated with the Nagaland Cricket Stadium, and built at a cost of Rs 19.8 crore. Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh were the other states, which got the academies.
The Academy comes with 4 cricket practice nets, gymnasium, swimming pool, changing rooms with lockers, and other amenities as required by BCCI norms. It comes with Annual Maintenance Services. According to the Nagaland Cricket Association (NCA), the construction of the facility began in August 2023 and completed in November 2025.
At the inauguration programme, today, NCA Secretary, Hyunilo Anilo Khing described the establishment of the academy as a dream come true for the 6 NE states. For a sport vulnerable to rain, he said that the all-weather training facility will “enable our boys and girls to play (train) cricket, whether it’s raining or not… to advance their game and improve their skill set.”
While he thanked the Prime Minister for inaugurating the 6 academies, he credited the BCCI for making it possible. He added that the state association is looking forward to the BCCI funding more cricket infrastructure developments in Nagaland. He also recalled it was Nagaland Chief Minister, Dr Neiphiu Rio, who first put up the proposal for a cricket academy in the state, when the latter was the NCA President.
Khing said that the Madhya Pradesh-based Nipani Infratech handled the construction, as prescribed by the BCCI technical and quality standards. Grant Thornton Bharat was the project management consultant.
