600 cops will aim for bullseye at All India Police Shooting Championship

13th All India Police Shooting Championship begins at Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex, Balewadi, and the Wadachi Wadi Firing Range in Undri, from Monday.

PUNE Six-hundred police shooters will be seen in action at the 13th All India Police Shooting Championship which will commence at the Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex, Balewadi, and the Wadachi Wadi Firing Range in Undri, from today.

(From left)Sandeep Bishnoi, commissioner of police, Pimpri-Chinchwad; TS Dhillon (retd), IG, CRPF; and Sudhir Hiremath, DCP (Crime & HQ), Pimpri-Chinchwad, at the press conference announcing the event on Saturday. (HT PHOTO)

In 2013, Pune hosted the tournament, while the 12th edition took place in Kerala in 2019.

“The event is very important for all police shooters as it gives them a platform to get selected for the Indian team,” said Sandeep Bishnoi, IPS, Commissioner of Police, Pimpri-Chinchwad, at a press conference.

Events begin on Monday, but the official opening ceremony will take place on Tuesday. The event concludes on January 18.

Events will be conducted for men and women in the 10-metre, 25-metre, 50-metre and 300-metre range categories, for rifle and pistol.

All the 300-metre events will take place at the Wadachi Wadi range in Undri, while the rest will be held at the Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Balewadi.

“This tournament has always helped us to get good results at the World Police Games. In 2019 we won 60 medals at the World Police Games (China),” said TS Dhillon (retd), IG CRPF, and chairman of the technical committee for the event.

The Border Security Force (BSF) has largest contingent with 52 shooters, while 47 shooters from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) will be in action.

Some of India’s best shooters in the fray

Taking aim in Pune will be 2002 Commonwealth gold medallist Samaresh Jung (air pistol event; CISF), Avneet Kaur Sidhu from the Punjab Police who represented India in the 10m air rifle at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing and India’s No. 1 in the women’s 50m Rifle 3, Anjum Moudgil. Moudgil is a sub-inspector with the Punjab Police.

Lajja Goswami, a silver medallist in the women’s 50-metre rifle 3 event at the World Cup in Granada in 2019, who also became the first sportswoman to be appointed as police inspector in the Gujarat police cadre under the sports quota will be competing.

Elizabeth Susan Koshy, an India international in the women’s 50m Rifle Prone event, representing Kerala Police, will also be taking part.

All India Police Shooting (Sports) Championship

Dates: January 12-18

Venue: Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex Shooting range, Balewadi: 10m, 25m, 50m; Wadachi Wadi Shooting Range, Undri: 300m

Teams: 29

No of Shooters: 600

Police teams: Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Assam Rifles; Border Security Force, Chandigarh, Central Industrial Security Force, Central Reserve Police Force, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Intelligence Bureau Delhi, Indo-Tibetan Border Police, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Manipur, Rajasthan, Sashsatra Seema Bal, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarkhand, West Bengal.

Schedule

Events conducted in 10m, 25m, 50m, 300m ranges

January 13

50m: Fire Pistol; 300m: Prone Men and Women

January 14

10m: Air Rifle Women; 25m: Standard Pistol; 50m: Prone men; 300m: Prone Men and Women; Official Opening Ceremony

January 15

10m: Air Pistol Men; 25m: Sports Pistol; 50m: Prone Women; 300m: 3position men and women

January 16

10m: Air Pistol Women; 25m: CF; 50m: 3 Position men; 300m: 3 Position men and women

January 17

10m: Air Rifle men; 25m: RF; 50m: 3 Position Men; 300m: 3 position men and women

January 18

25m: RF; 300m: 3 Position Men and women; Closing ceremony