E-Paper
67th National School Games: Players, coaches struggle for food, lodging in Ludhiana district
A total of 1,472 children, along with 300 coaches and 175 gazetted officials, arrived in the district for the games scheduled from January 6 to January 11
: The anticipated smooth hosting of the 67th National School Games in the Ludhiana district faced setbacks even before its inauguration, as chaos unfolded for thousands of children, their coaches, and teachers arriving here from across the country, who were found struggling for lodging and food in the biting cold.
A total of 1,472 children, along with 300 coaches and 175 gazetted officials, arrived in the district for the games scheduled from January 6 to January 11. Despite the formation of committees for smooth functioning of the event and numerous meetings, the education department failed miserably to make the participants feel welcome and comfortable.
The invitation sent by the office of the president, School Games Federation of India, clearly stated accommodation guidelines, specifying three-star or equivalent lodging for players, coaches, and officials.
However, at the registration centre at Government Senior Secondary School inside Punjab Agricultural University, coaches, sporting staff, and government officials arriving for the event alleged that they were instructed to stay with students in the school rooms allotted to their teams.
Nidhi Chaurishiya and Suman (who goes by single name), both vice-principals of Government Senior Secondary School in Ajmer, Rajasthan, accompanying their team of 18 girls, expressed dissatisfaction at the mismanagement.
“The arrangements here are far from satisfactory,” they said, adding that they were being asked to stay with school children and shared transportation with them, despite protocol guidelines requiring separate vehicles for officials.
They also highlighted the lack of refreshments and designated spaces for freshening up after a strenuous overnight journey.
Adding to the grievances, participating teams were not provided with food until 3 pm, despite arriving as early as 8 am. Players and coaches claimed they were compelled to pay for six days’ meals in advance to access the first meal.
“Why should we pay for six days in advance? Our schedule might involve outings or end before the six-day event concludes. This way, our grants would go to waste,” Kaushal Panwar, a coach with the Rajasthan team said.
Teams accommodated in distant schools also expressed displeasure of having to travel 3-6 km for each meal in harsh weather conditions.
Teams from southern states like Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Karnataka, and Kerala struggled to adjust to the low temperatures.
“Under the guise of accommodation, they have provided mattresses and bedding placed on the classroom floor, with each room shared by 8-10 players. Not only does this contravene their protocols, but it is also impractical for children participating in tournaments to rest on the floor in significantly colder temperatures compared to their native places,” said Manikandan, karate coach from Tamil Nadu, who opted for hotel accommodation at his own expense.
The chaos and mismanagement extended to the registration centre, where hundreds of school children with their suitcases waited in a playground due to prolonged registration time and a lack of proper management.
Jaswinder Singh, principal of Government Senior Secondary School, Indrapuri, and a member of the accommodation committee, stated, “Following the instructions of the district education officer (DEO), our responsibility is to allocate bedding and accommodation at the specified schools for the participating teams. The number of players may have exceeded expectations, as teams from specific states have been designated to a single school. We are not familiar with the protocol.”
The district education officer did not reply to repeated calls and messages.
