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HT Readers’ Take | Chandigarh needs to punch its weight
Planned city Chandigarh boasts of quality sports infrastructure but falls behind when it comes to incentivising the players. For instance, it lacks sports gradation, which means players lose out on benefits available to their counterparts in neighbouring states. Readers say sports department must pull up its socks before its too late
Talent abundant, opportunities few
The city doesn’t lack talent but falls short on opportunities. All Chandigarh schools stress on academics, which is excellent, but not all schools promote sports. The administration should work in collaboration with schools and private sports associations to bring out talent. Open competitions should be held in all sports, including the less popular ones such as kabaddi, fencing, mallakhamb, kho-kho. Anybody of any age group who registers should be allowed to play in his or her category. Winners should be sent for state and nationals and all participants should be given certificates that will hold value in academics.
Priya Mahajan, Chandigarh
Make sports part of school curriculum
Over the years, school-going children are increasingly getting drawn to computer and mobile games, instead of sports. This is where schools’ role comes into play. Sports should be made a part of the curriculum so as to discover talent at its nascent stage and groom them for the bigger competitive events. SC Luthra, Chandigarh
Need to upgrade facilities to produce champion athletes
The facilities for track and field (athletics) are below average. We are still to get a synthetic track whereas our neighbour Panchkula boasts of a sparkling new synthetic track at the Tau Devi Lal Stadium. The athletics tracks at Panjab University, Sector 7 stadium and the Sector 46 stadium sorely lack the infrastructure to produce champion athletes from the plethora of talent available in schools, colleges and the university. The synthetic track has been hanging fire for too long now. It’s times these facilities are upgraded in war footing.
Capt Birinder S Sidhu, via email
Build a sports university
Due to excessive use of WhatsApp, Twitter and various games on mobile phones, outdoor sports are finding few takers. To motivate youth to take up sports, school need to play their part. Chandigarh has good infrastructure but it largely remains under-utilised. Schools and colleges need to encourage its students to venture into sports by holding regular competitive events. A university to cater to sporting talent will also go a long way.
Capt Amar Jeet, Kharar
Khelo India grant-in-aid a boon
The Khelo India Scheme implemented by the Government of India provides funds for promotion of sports in the entire country and a number of grant-in-aid are given to states and Union Territories. Chandigarh administration is required to promote sports by creating catchy events, involving influential people, and NGOs, use of social media, upgrading playgrounds and equipments of all schools, colleges and sports complexes with modern equipments and gadgets. If the authorities are able to make good use of the funds available, it prove boon for the sports culture in the city.
Kidar Nath Sharma, Chandigarh
Don’t keep the facilities locked and out-of bounds
Chandigarh has ample facilities, including all-weather swimming pools, indoor sports facilities, an established lawn-tennis academy, football academy and the cricket stadium which is among the best in India. However, these are not used to capacity. After spending huge amounts, the facilities are kept out of bound and locked, except got the two-three hours in the morning and evening. The facilities should be open to schools and colleges that don’t have such facilities. To motivate more students to take up sports, the authorities should hold camps to attract young talent.
Amar Jeet Singh Sandhu, Patiala
Sponsors, supportive policies for young talent
To promote the sports culture in the city, multiple renewed efforts are needed. Financial resources, facilities and supportive policies need to be planned to promote sports among the youth. Chandigarh administration must ensure that there is a well-managed and well-equipped playground in every school and in college. Inter school, inter-city sports camps and tournaments need to be conducted at junior, sub-junior, senior level. Participation in outdoor sports should be made mandatory in schools.
Prabhjot Nagpal, Zirakpur
Catch them young, watch them grow
Talent may come in any shape or form, but it needs opportunities in order to shine and develop further. It is necessary to identify a child’s talent in early childhood so that the appropriate coaching can be provided to them so that they can accomplish the higher optimum performance. If a talent is not given the chance to prosper at the child’s formative years, it may remain latent.
Partha Banerjee, Panchkula
Scholarships, fin
The benefits of sports surpass physical well-being. Sports help foster an individual’s social and emotional health too. Sports can also help keep the youth away from anti-social activities and most importantly away from drugs. But sadly, most youngsters these days are hooked to screen games. To encourage youth towards sports, we should ensure that educational institutions have adequate infrastructure for indoor and outdoor games. Participation in outdoor sports should be made mandatory in schools, and sportspersons should be given advantage in jobs. Students excelling in sports should also be given financial support and scholarships. There is a strong need of setting up a sports academy in the smart city to enable youth to pursue games.
Manjinder Kaur, Chandigarh
More efforts needed to promote sports
Its misconception that sports distracts children from studies. When children take up a sport from a young age, it helps them hone their life skills, develop a team spirit, improve cognitive skills and keep fit. Chandigarh has sufficient sports infrastructure. What it lacks, however, is efforts to promote sports. Besides encouraging parents to send their children into sports, we need to encourage more brands and corporates to sponsor the young talent.
Ishita Nara, via email
Make use of available infrastructure
Chandigarh already has the best academies like Chandigarh Football and Hockey Academy (CFHA) with dedicated and experienced coaches, free-education, schooling, lodging and food for players. CFHA has produced the best players at national and international-level. The city also has sports complex and infrastructure for every game. The thing that pushes players them back is that they have to juggle between school, tuitions and the sport. Some relaxation must be provided to students who are focusing on sports.
Abhilasha Gupta, Mohali
Red-tape, politics a spoilsport
The bureaucratic red-tape in sports affairs needs to be addressed. The functioning of the sports department needs to be fast and transparent. Players should not have to wait for long to get scholarships, sports funding etc. The working conditions of coaches also need to be improved. Performance-linked incentives should be brought into the system. Players’ potential and performance should be assessed from time-to-time so that they can improve.
Vijay Malia, Chandigarh
City needs gradation policy for sports
It is disappointing see Chandigarh’s dismal performance in the Khelo India Games. Despite crores of rupees spent by the government of India on the games every year, it seems the ‘youth’ is missing from the gradation policy of Chandigarh sports department, making the hard work and efforts put in by the budding sports aspirants go in vain. Without the gradation policy, many in the sports field say the purpose of youth games is lost. Senior officials and coaches of the sports department have commented that the policy needs to be redrafted as youth of Chandigarh are deprived of benefits that sports aspirants of the neighbouring states such as Punjab get. The gradation certificate from the sports department is a necessity for the achiever to get admission into the professional colleges and other government institutions.
Sanjay Chopra, Mohali
Bring in the latest technology
Chandigarh is a good city for sportspersons as there are ample playground, open gyms etc almost in every sector. Besides, all schools and colleges too have decent sports facilities, for instance the hockey ground at Panjab University. The need, however, is to add the latest technology to these facilities. Sports quota and basic amenities for sportspersons will go a long way in drawing more youths to the game. To make the residents aware of the facilities and benefits available, the websites of the sports department must be updated in a timely manner.
Avinash Goyal, Chandigarh
Makes sports a mandatory subject
To motivate school-going children to take up sports, physical education/ sports must be made a compulsory subject like others subjects. This way not only physical fitness but sports will also get priority. Therefore, the need of the hour is to make sports a compulsory subject and passing in sports subject should be made mandatory for promotion to next class. This may lead to more medals in the future.
Col TBS Bedi (retd), Mohali
Ensure unbiased sports selections
Players of Chandigarh certainly did well at the Khelo India Youth Games and won many laurels for the city. However, a scope of improvement will always remain. The authorities must proactively start their preparation for next year’s game and should start encouraging all school students to play and excel in sports right from a tender age. There should be no bias or nepotism in selecting players to represent the city. More, world-class and state-of-the-art training centres should be built in the city. Together, we can ensure that Chandigarh will become the next hub of sports in North India.
Saikrit Gulati, Chandigarh
Better facilities, incentives for players
It was indeed heartening to note that Chandigarh finished at the 13th spot among 33 participating teams in Khelo India Youth Games this year, romping home with 16 medals. There is no denying the fact that more medals could have been added to the tally, given the sports infrastructure in the city, which is far from satisfactory. Chandigarh, being the joint capital of both the sporting states - Punjab and Haryana – could be developed as a hub of sports for the young and upcoming. They need to work in tandem and chart out plans to bring more facilities for sportspersons. Putting in place state-of-the-art facilities, ensuring incentive to budding sportspersons, would go a long way in reviving the sports culture in the city.
Ramesh K Dhiman, Chandigarh
Role of parents, schools
If you really want to promote sports, you need to make it a culture first. The first education starts at home and then school. Government must allow schools to registered only if they have sports facilities.
Anju Mohan, Panchkula
Identify players’ strengths, work on weaknesses
We also cannot expect children to excel in sports overnight. Proper training should be given and trainers must identify the strengths of children and train them accordingly. Ultimately it is the hard work and the training that will help us get us more medals.
Garv Bhupesh Verma, Panchkula
Sports dept needs to pull up its socks
It is heartening to note that despite the city having no infrastructure for cycling, our players won medals in the event. Indeed, there can be no stopping real talent. But our sports department needs to pull up its socks and ensure infrastructure upgrade and other facilities to boost the morale of our players. The existing infrastructure, such as the grounds at schools and universities, should also be put to good use.
Kundan Lal Sharma, Mohali
Scope for improvement
In recent Khello India Youth Games, Chandigarh has performed well but it still needs more bolster its performance. The city has a lot of potential but it needs nurturing. The administration should establish sports nurseries and in addition to it, establish a sports university.
Subhash Chugh, via email
Sports values need to be inculcated
Sports foster team spirit, discipline, sharing and value of time. But parents need to help children regulate the feeling competitiveness in games. Of late, we see the element of sportsmanship is missing in some games. How much pressure will children be able to take-- studies, sports, career.
Sargun Babuta, via email
READER OF THE WEEK
‘Lopsided sports gradation policy, babu culture a bane’
Sportspersons cannot thrive in Chandigarh as long as the ‘babu’ culture comes in the way. Sports council meetings are not held for years together and the sports gradation policy in the city is lopsided and has not been amended for over 10 years. The sports department does not have a permanent director-- at the moment ad hoc charge is with the sub-divisional magistrate and sports associations do not conduct elections in a fair manner, etc.
Gaurav Bansal, Chandigarh
EXPERT TAKE
Spotting talent
We are introducing incentives like financial rewards, setting up centers for excellence for different sports and upgrading training facilities. Talent identification at early age is also one of our focus areas.
Tejdeep Singh Saini, UT sports director
Incentives lacking
The city doesn’t have a synthetic running track. It also does not felicitate any athlete who has won medals at national or int’l level. If this is continues, all good athletes will leave Chandigarh and go to other states.
Opinder Kaur Sekhon, veteran athlete
Resources underutilised
The city has so many national and international sportspersons, such as Abhinav Bindra and Jeev Milkha, but the admn barely makes use of their expertise. The admn lacks in planning and execution
Ranjit Bajaj, former footballer & sports promoter
Better planning
With less population and good sports infrastructure, Chandigarh can be a force to reckon with in the coming years. Providing qualified coaches to trainees at grassroots level along with scientific training can be a boon.
VRV Singh, former India cricketer and Level II coach
Sports literacy
There is a need to work on physical literacy, movement literacy and sports literacy at school level. The city needs to enhance its infrastructure and also bring out a sports policy.
Gurmeet Singh, head, physical edu dept, Panjab University
