Number of disciplines in KITG may increase next year: Union Minister Khadse

 

By Paritosh Pramanik

RAIPUR, Apr 1

DECLARING that the first Khelo India Tribal Games (KITG) held in Raipur has been huge success, Union Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Sports Raksha Khadse said that the games will expand with each passing year and Indian sports would be benefited with fresh talents from the hinterlands.

Addressing a packed press conference, Khadse lauded the efforts taken by Chhattisgarh government and all those associated in organising the event.

“The first Khelo India Tribal Games has turned out to be a huge success and I congratulate Chhattisgarh government for organising it in a well-planned manner on such a short notice,” Khadse told the media on Wednesday.

This year, competitions were held in seven disciplines and Khadse believed that in future more sports will be added.

“This is the first Tribal Games and we have received good response from tribal communities. We will definitely try to increase the number of disciplines in future but first we will have a review meeting and then will think about it. The response from athletes was tremendous and more discipline will bring more talent,” Khadse declared.

On expanding its wings in the country, Khadse said that the government will try to take these games to maximum tribal belts of the country. “I belong to Maharashtra. Districts like Chandrapur, Gadchiroli and Nandurbar are also tribal belts. These games are exclusively for the tribal community and we will take it to tribal belts only in future.”

Khadse mentioned that since the last eight years, sports culture has started developing in the country and the government is committed to take the sports to the next level.

“Now, tribals are hoping to excel in sports at national 

level. They are aiming to get a job through sports,” she claimed.

“Sports culture has now started developing in India. Women are stepping forward to take up sports now. Through Asmita League, we have received tremendous response from the fairer sex. Around 2 lakh women participated in the Asmita League on March 8, which was really heartening.

“We want to take the sports culture to every part of the country and to every house of this nation. We want every single kid to take up sports in India. Then only we will become a powerhouse in sports in future,” Khadse felt.

“At the same time we will have to make a balance between traditional games and developed sports. We will have to see what kind of potential we get in traditional sport and at the same time will have to keep promoting those sportspersons training for Olympic sports,” Khadse clarified.

“With the help of State governments, we are preparing a roadmap to strengthen sports infrastructures. We are requesting big corporate houses to help traditional sports grow through their CSR funds and 

adopt a few games so that players can be developed in the proper way.

“The Central Government is also planning to start district sports schools in every state and for that the government has asked all the States to draw an outline,” she informed.

STRAIGHT BAT

Khadse’s ‘no’ to including cricket in KITG

Even though cricket is the most popular sport in the country, State Sports Minister Raksha Khadse straightway refused to promote the sport through Khelo India Tribal Games.

Not demeaning the sport, Khadse said that the promotion and sponsorship cricket is getting is sufficient and the government is promoting the lesser known sports.

“Cricket is being run quite well by the BCCI. The associations and various clubs in the country are promoting the game beautifully. There is a beeline to sponsor cricket in our country. Our focus is only on Olympic sport and traditional sports. We want to take these sports forward and the Sports Ministry is working on it. Cricket is part of our ministry but you can see that cricket is a developed sport and there is a culture of that sport in India. But other sports are not being backed by sponsors. So we are trying to promote other sports so that their viewership reaches the level at which cricket is,” Khadse explained.

----------------------

DOUBLE DELIGHT

Odisha men, women are hockey champs

By Paritosh Pramanik

RAIPUR, Apr 1

ODISHA men and women scripted history by winning the maiden Khelo India Tribal Games’ hockey titles on Wednesday. The women edged past Mizoram by a solitary goal in the evening while the men defeated Jharkhand 4-1 in a high-intensity match which was delayed by floodlight glitch at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Hockey Stadium in Raipur.

In the women’s encounter, Ajmina Kujur (39th) scored the match winning goal while in the men’s category, Abhishek Lakra (20th), Amit Kumar Toppo (21st), Akash Sorong (37th) and Satish Munda (60th) scored for the winners. Jaymasih Tuti scored for Jharkhand in the 15th minute.

Odisha men showed their intent right from the start and kept the ball possession. However, it was Jharkhand who took the lead at the stroke of first quarter with a clever goal from Tuti. Tuti scooped the ball over an advancing Odisha keeper Dilip Kumar Sa to put his side ahead.

But that was the only time when Jharkhand celebrated. Odisha changed the gears and combined brilliantly to breach Jharkhand defence time and again to lay their hands on the coveted title. In the women’s final, Odisha eves showed great temperament to pip Mizoram.

Till the third quarter, the match was in balance with both the teams holding their fort.

However, it was the last quarter which produced the winner. Ajmina stunned Mizoram with a fine slap shot into the board off a penalty corner in the 39th minute. Mizoram gave their all in the final minutes but Odisha held their nerves to claim the gold medal.

Talawar, Nagini bag golds to extend Karnataka’s lead 

RACE walker Dasharath Talawar and middle-distance runner Nagini added a gold medal each to table toppers Karnataka’s tally while Chhattisgarh’s Gajendra Thakur bagged a silver in the men’s 800m.

Dasharath led Karnataka’s 1-2 in the men’s 10km race walk with a time of 45:13.85s with Darshan Bagadi (46:25.90s) finishing second ahead of Gujarat’s Sagarbhai Katara (48:16.09s) at the Kreeda Parisar athletics track in Jagdalpur. Nagini then dominated the women’s 800m race to clinch the gold with a time of 2:13.80s to take Karnataka’s gold medal tally to 21.  Karnataka has also bagged eight silver and seven bronze for an aggregate of 36 medals. Chattisgarh’s Gajendra Thakur claimed the men’s 800m silver medal with a timing of 1:53.82s behind Munda, who clocked 1:53.33s. 

Chhattisgarh men’s hockey team clinched the bronze medal by beating neighbouring Madhya Pradesh 14-6.

 The two medals took their tally to two gold, eight silver and five bronze and are placed 10th in the overall standings.

With just one day of track and field competitions left, second-placed Odisha continued to chase the table toppers with four gold on Wednesday to take their overall tally to 17 gold, 10 silver and 16 bronze medals.

Jharkhand now have a total of 19 medals -- nine gold, three silver and 7  bronze medals.

--------------

Milkman Hamam delivers gold

Special Correspondent

RAIPUR, Apr 1

IT TOOK 14 long years to see the yellow metal dangle around his neck. During those painful years, Jammu and Kashmir’s Hamam Hussain had to move door to door to deliver milk. When not practicing, Hamam had to help his brother in the daily chores to support his family.

On Wednesday, the 28-year-old wrestler from Jorawar village in Jammu lifted the men’s 79kg freestyle gold by defeating Himachal Pradesh’s Mohit Kumar.

Wrestling was the most loved sport in Hussain family. Hamam’s brother was also a wrestler who participated till the State-level meets. But after their father’s demise the families responsibility fell on the elder Hussain’s shoulder and he decided to quit the sport.

“He motivated me to continue wrestling and took me to dangals around J&K,” Hussain said.

“The buffaloes our father left behind became our only source of livelihood. Once I stepped into the mud akhada, I was fascinated with the sport,” said Hamam.

Hamam has to walk 20 km away from his village for training mud akhada and travels around 40 km to Jammu for mat practice.

“The Sports Authority of India centre is in Jammu and we live in a lower region, so it is quite far for us. It is difficult to go there regularly for practice. We usually go only when competitions are there; otherwise, we train in mud akhadas.

Without any personal coach, Hamam has delivered handsomely in Raipur.

“I don’t have a personal coach. Senior wrestlers in the akhada guide us. We get coaches when we train on mats. In villages, we don’t get the kind of facilities that wrestlers in cities have. If we get better facilities, wrestlers from our region can win more medals at national and international levels,” he said.

For Hamam, this gold is more than just a medal and he is a contended man. “It feels great to be here. The facilities provided were very good. We come from a backward area where there is not much support for wrestling, so we have to travel long in train. This is the first time such a competition has been organised for us, and if more such events are held, we can win more medals,” he concluded.

 with a hope that he will see more such medals dangling around his neck.