Preferential treatment not given to Sports persons
Bureau Report
Port Blair, June 01: Sports infrastructure was never given such importance as is being given now by the Administration. The present Infrastructure in Netaji Sports Complex has been upgraded and effort has been made to incorporate games like hockey in the available space inside Velodrome. A new international standard football stadium has come up inside JNRM premise. Now another multi event sports complex is coming up in Carnicobar. The work of athletic track inside this complex is almost ready for use.
Sadly, speaking to sportsperson of various events, it is felt that these sports facilities are not freely available to sportspersons and sports associations. Result is under-utilisation of all available infrastructures.
Young budding talents complain that the multipurpose Hall is provided to some elite people of the society for leisurely game for free. Sportspersons are driven away even when they are ready to pay users fee. Preference is not given to young badminton and volleyball players to practice at a time of their convenience.
Mostly importantly, no record of daily users is maintained here to ensure that the in-charge of this Hall is never caught for his wrongdoings. The record shows that there is no income from this Multipurpose Hall at par with the number of persons utilising it.
The same is the case of Multi-gym. Here record is maintained, but unauthorised users are seen more often. There is no special time or space for sportspersons in this modern gymnasium. The facility is wasted for elderly people with no interest in sports.
The case of Swimming Pool is not different. This facility also does not have any record of daily users. The powerful and mighty among the society has easy access to swimming pool. Their children spend leisurely time inside this pool. The income from the user’s fee is dismal considering the number of people using it.
The velodrome is used regularly for practice and the result is evident from the medal tally. But this velodrome is not open to non trainees. The budding cycling talents have no place to practice. The condition of Hockey ground inside velodrome is very poor. It is very badly maintained. It is dangerous to even practice inside this ground. This indicates the scant respect given to national game. This game is totally neglected. Here again there is no record of people using it for practice.
The international standard FIFA Football ground is not utilised for practicing. Football Tournaments are a rare sight inside this complex. SAI trainees are also not seen training inside this complex. It seems that the Sports Directorate is not taking any initiative to ensure that this facility is put to use round the year.
Even AN football Association has failed to conduct regular events in various categories inside this stadium. Here again there is no record of daily utilisation of this stadium.
Now the new Athletic track is ready in Carnicobar. With no talent selected for training in Athletics, it is more or less sure that this facility will also not be put to use. The result will be dismal performance of our players in National Arena.
Former Sports Administrators and sportspersons say that lack of accountability is the main problem. No in-charge is made accountable for under-utilisation or loss of revenue.
Hence they use these fasciitis as their private property and drive away sportspersons to make way for the powerful people of the society to play leisurely game. Thus sportspersons are a neglected lot.
Allowing only sportspersons to utilise these facilities with proper record of utilisation and fixing responsibility on all in-charges of sports facility for loss of revenue will yield deserving result. Names of players can be collected from various associations and they should be given the maximum time to utilise these facilities.
If such facilities cannot be provided to players, then there is no use of developing such facilities worth crores. By giving it for free to those who are not sportspersons, the Sports Directorate is making mockery of Sports infrastructure constructed in the name of developing sports.
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