Spread across an area of four-acre, Parade Ground is the place where the British, the Dutch and the Portuguese conducted their military drills and parades. Parade Ground was a part of Portuguese construction where they stored their armaments. The ground was once used a hockey and a football field by the Portuguese and Dutch colonisers, while the British used it as a cricket pitch. During the colonial rule, the ground hosted the flags of the Portuguese, the Dutch and the British. After Independence, the British Union Jack was taken down to hoist the Indian Tricolour, and since then hockey matches between the Navy and local clubs have been regularly organised. Some of the national level football tournaments have also been played here. Today, the ground is an arena for those who come to play football and cricket. The Kochi-Muziris Biennale, an international contemporary art festival of Kochi, is also inaugurated here.