Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Wednesday inaugurated 1,000 more Pendu Khed Maidan, taking the number of village sports grounds opened so far to 1,764 against a target of 3,100. The event was held at Shahpur village in Fatehgarh Sahib.
Mann said the initiative was aimed at drawing young people towards sports and keeping them away from drugs. He said Punjab was laying the foundation to become a hub of international sporting talent. The government is providing football, hockey, volleyball and cricket kits for the grounds.
The chief minister said 255 grounds were dedicated in the first phase on May 4 and another 509 in the second phase on August 24. The third phase added 1,000 grounds, including 93 in Fatehgarh Sahib. The programme is part of Yudh Nashean Virudh.
The grounds are planned to include chain-link fencing, plantations, walking tracks with footlights, separate toilets, equipment storerooms, submersible pumps and hydrants. Children’s play areas and high-mast lights are included. Selected grounds will have six-lane, 400-metre running tracks.
Villages will receive equipment such as goalposts, volleyball poles and nets, balls, football studs and cricket kits, depending on local preferences. Football and volleyball coaches will be deployed at all grounds to provide free coaching, Mann said.
{{/usCountry}}Villages will receive equipment such as goalposts, volleyball poles and nets, balls, football studs and cricket kits, depending on local preferences. Football and volleyball coaches will be deployed at all grounds to provide free coaching, Mann said.
{{/usCountry}}Village-level committees will oversee maintenance. They will include the sarpanch, youth club president, junior engineer and panchayat secretary, along with a woman member or sportsperson nominated by the gram panchayat.
The government said it had earmarked ₹1,500 crore for the 3,100 grounds and allocated a sports budget of ₹1,744 crore. It is also developing 600 rural gyms, of which 500 have been completed. Mann criticised previous governments, alleging that they had not provided grants to villages or undertaken development work. Cabinet minister Tarunpreet Singh Sond was present.