Rs 16 crore spent for holding Shillong leg of South Asian Games

SHILLONG: The total expenditure incurred in hosting the 12th South Asian Games (SAG) here last month is nearly Rs 16 crore, Meghalaya Assembly was informed today.

Of the Rs 15.39 crore allotted by the Union Ministry for Youth Affairs and Sports, Rs 7.77 crore was spent in security related acquisition by the state police and Rs 3.92 crore was used for upgradation of sports infrastructure, Sports and Youth Affairs Minister Zenith Sangma said.

The Municipal Board has also incurred Rs 2.5 crore expenses for facelifting of civic amenities while launching of the Shillong leg of the game was allotted Rs 1.2 crore, he said during question hour.

Besides the central allocation, the state government has also spent over Rs 41 lakh to host a dinner for the officials and sports persons, the Minister said.

The cost of the dinner venue, U Soso Tham auditorium, was Rs 13,22,400 even as Rs 5.6 lakh was paid for the artists who performed at the event, he said.

Eight sports disciplines including women's football, badminton and boxing were successfully held here during the SAG from February 6 to 16 .