Chandigarh, March 24 The upcoming Asian Champions Trophy will be hosted by Punjab in October this year, announced Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann here on Tuesday.
The matches will be played in Mohali and Jalandhar.
The last major international event in Jalandhar was a high-profile Test match against Pakistan in 2006 at the Surjit Hockey Stadium.
The ACT will also be the first international hockey tournament to be held in Punjab under the aegis of the International Hockey Federation (FIH) and the Asian Hockey Federation (AHF).
Addressing the media here, Mann said it will be for the first time that an international hockey event will be held in the state.
Although the venues have been finalized, the dates of the tournament will be decided later.
Mann said a meeting with the representatives of Hockey India and the AHF was held on Monday. The meeting was also attended by Hockey India president Dilip Tirkey.
"Yes, the ACT this year will be held in Punjab... we have allotted this tournament to them. It's a historic occasion as Punjab, the cradle of Indian hockey, is going to host an international tournament for the first time," HI secretary general Bholanath Singh told