As a mark of respect to his attempts to turn the dream of having an international stadium in Kochi to a reality, the Greater Cochin Development Authority will soon name one of the stands in the Jawaharlal International Stadium after K.Karunakaran. Chief Minister Oommen Chandy will unveil the K.Karunakaran stand, coming up near the VIP pavilion at the stadium, in the Malayalam month of Chingom, said N.Venugopal, chairman, GCDA.
The then chief minister Karunakaran was the chief guest for the Santosh Trophy final at the Maharaja's College stadium in March 1993. In front of a boisterous crowd, with the spectators seated on makeshift galleries made of bamboo, Kerala beat Maharshtra 2-0 to win the title for the third consecutive time. It was during the prize distribution ceremony that Karunakaran made the announcement that the next edition of Santosh Trophy in Kerala would be played at a new stadium of international standards. And the Leader kept his promise. The stadium was constructed in a record time of just one year and inaugurated in 1996.
