Prime Minister Khaleda Zia has asked for maintaining discipline in the country's sports arena through curbing irregularities and wastage.

She particularly underscored the need for downsizing the numbers of officials accompanying players during foreign tours to minimise expenses. In this context, she reminded that funds for sports have to be allocated from the country's limited resources.

"We don't want to hear stories of double or triple number of sports officials accompanying the players during foreign tours," she said while laying the foundation stone of the National Sports Council (NSC) Tower yesterday.

Later the Prime Minister inaugurated the newly-built Birshrestha Shaheed Sipahi Mostafa Stadium at Kamalapur.

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Ministers, MPs, chiefs of three services, senior government officials and a large number of sports men and women as well as sports organisers were present at both functions.

The planned 20-storied NSC Tower would be built at the northern side of the Bangabandhu National Stadium at an estimated cost of Tk 40 crore.

The Tower will have basement for car parking, auditorium, media centre, sport museum, players' accommodation, NSC office, library, cyber cafe and multipurpose hall. The NSC will use the first 10 floors of the building while the remaining portion would be used commercially.

Officials of the Ministry of Youth and Sports indicated that the remaining 10 floors of the NSC Tower might be used for a three-star hotel. The estimated period for completion of the construction of NSC Tower is two

years, they said.

Later, the Prime Minister went from the NSC function to Kamalapur and opened the newly-built stadium on the west of Kamalapur Railway Station. She unveiled the plaque and a mural of Birshrestha Shaheed Sipahi Mostafa at the entrance of the stadium and offered munajat.

From a well-decorated stage, she formally announced the stadium open. She also released colourful balloons and pigeons to mark the occasion.

Soon after the opening of the stadium, Habibur Rahman, father of Birshrestha Mostafa called on the Prime Minister at her office and conveyed his thanks to her for naming the stadium after his martyred son.

She donated Taka one lakh to Rahman and directed the Ministry of Youth and Sports to arrange a job for a member of his family.z