The state government has made elaborate arrangements for players and delegates coming from as many as 15 countries to take part in the upcoming men’s hockey world cup at Kalinga Stadium.

The tourism department has booked as many as eight hotels in the city where the players will stay during the event. Some 58 hotels in Bhubaneswar and 38 in Cuttack have been upgraded with online booking facilities, which will be used for the stay of visitors coming from the participating countries.

Taking the safety and taste of the players and delegates on priority, the tourism department has also completed orientation of chefs and general manager. Special arrangements were made for regular testing of food and kitchen and also for random checking of all other hotel for food safety and hygiene.

Sources said that the chefs have been oriented in such a manner that they would prepare the food according to cuisines of the various participating countries. “We did it during the Asian Athletics Championships and are doing the same again. But this time, we are doing it in a bigger manner. The chefs are being trained to prepare the food according the taste of the players,” said a tourism official.

He said that initially there were some problems in booking the hotels for the players since not many of them had four-star ratings. “We have overcome the problem by upgrading the facilities. The players have started arriving and are being accommodated in the booked hotels,” said the official.

Besides, Odisha Tourism Development Corporation has provided five Volvo buses and got another eight from neighbouring Telangana for daily transportation of the players and delegates to and from the stadium and other sightseeing places. Odisha State Road Transport Corporation has also put 50 other AC buses on stand-by for the use of the players.

The tourism department along with the heritage wing of the Bhubaneswar Development Authority has also prepared three special routes where the players and delegates will be taken on ride of the state capital. The routes were prepared with approval of International Hockey Federation.

The first route will connect KIIT Square and Lingaraj Temple while the other one will connect Janata Maidan (the parking place) and Kalinga Stadium and the final one will be a part of City Tour that will cover major tourist places. “The routes got special permit on which the players and delegates will be taken on rides,” said an official of the BDA.