Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, speaking on Friday, highlighted how a new sports culture has flourished across the country under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the past decade.
He credited transformative initiatives like Khelo India, the Fit India Movement, and Sansad Khel Pratiyogita for fostering this positive change. The chief minister emphasised that the Uttar Pradesh government is equally committed to promoting sports and supporting athletes within the state.
Addressing the inauguration ceremony of Gorakhpur’s first mini sports complex in Bhati Vihar Colony, Chief Minister Yogi reiterated the government’s dedication to expanding sports infrastructure and opportunities.
“In order to encourage sports and players, the state government has launched the Rural Sports League. Sports environments are being created in villages through Yuvak Mangal Dals and Mahila Mangal Dals,” he said.
He further mentioned that sports fields are being constructed in every village, and funds and land are being provided for the creation of mini-stadiums at the block level and full stadiums at the district level.
On this occasion, the chief minister announced that the state government will build an international cricket stadium in Gorakhpur. Additionally, in a few months, construction of a large sports centre will begin in the Raptinagar area, covering 33 acres, he added. He also mentioned that a mini-stadium is under construction in Sahjanwa, and the process of building mini-stadiums in other areas is underway. The chief minister further shared that the Mini Sports Complex at Bhati Vihar will be managed under the public-private partnership (PPP) model, providing players with excellent training and facilities.
Chief Minister Yogi emphasised that sports is also an excellent way to build a career. The state government directly offers government jobs to players who win medals at the Olympics, Asian Games, Commonwealth Games and World Championships,, he pointed out. He mentioned that Lalit Upadhyay, a member of the Indian hockey team who won a medal at the 2022 Tokyo Olympics, was appointed as a deputy superintendent of police. Similarly, Rajkumar Pal, a player of Olympic-winning hockey team, will also be appointed as a deputy superintendent of police, he added. The chief minister further shared that over 500 players have been given jobs in the UP Police and other government departments.
Addressing the financial rewards for athletes, the chief minister stated that the state government awards cash prizes to players from Uttar Pradesh who win medals in Olympic individual events: Rs 6 crore for a gold medal, Rs 4 crore for silver, and Rs 2 crore for bronze. For team events, the rewards are Rs 3 crore, Rs 2 crore and Rs 1 crore respectively. Medal winners in the Asian Games, Commonwealth Games and World Championships also receive cash prizes, along with incentive awards for participating players in these events.
While mentioning the players selected for sports awards, the chief minister highlighted that this year four prominent athletes have been chosen for the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award. Among them is Praveen Kumar, a player from Uttar Pradesh who won a gold medal at the Paralympics. Additionally, the Arjuna Award has been given to Murlikant Petkar, a player who won a gold medal in the Paralympics during the 1970s. Although he had been forgotten by many, Prime Minister Modi recognised his achievement.
The chief minister also emphasised the importance of sports for a healthy life. “Most people who fell victim to COVID-19 were those who led a sedentary lifestyle. For a healthy life, hard work is essential, and sports serve as a significant medium for this. Only a fit youth can lay the foundation for a healthy and strong society and nation, and the energy of a fit youth benefits the nation as a whole,” Yogi added.
The chief minister also inspected the Mini Sports Complex built in the name of Baba Raghav Das. He reviewed the facilities, including a gym for indoor games, an administrative block, a badminton court, rifle and pistol shooting ranges, a multi-purpose hall, a 300-metre synthetic running track for outdoor games, and lawn tennis courts.
Pleased with the arrangements, the chief minister expressed satisfaction that government funds had been wisely utilised for the benefit of players. He particularly praised the shooting range, noting that shooting athletes will no longer have to travel outside to enhance their skills.
The Mini Sports Complex has been constructed by the Gorakhpur Development Authority (GDA) on a 2-acre land, at a cost of Rs 5.96 crore. Of this, Rs 3 crore was contributed by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath from his MLA fund, while the remaining amount was provided by GDA.
The inauguration ceremony was addressed by Mayor Dr Manglesh Srivastava. At the end of the event, Divisional Commissioner Anil Dhingra and GDA Vice-Chairman Anand Vardhan presented the chief minister with a memento.
During the inauguration ceremony, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath also distributed sports kits to 10 athletes. The recipients of the sports kits from the chief minister included Shagun, Anika Gautam, Pari Gupta, Harshit Bansal, Anshuman Mall, Azhar Ali, Utkarsh Srivastava, Riya Tripathi, Malvika Dwivedi and Akanksha Pandey.
On this occasion, MLC and Bharatiya Janata Party state vice president Dr Dharmendra Singh, MLAs Fateh Bahadur Singh, Vipin Singh, Sarwan Nishad, local councilor Dharmdev Chauhan, BJP metropolitan president Rajesh Gupta, Mahant Ravindra Das of Kalibari, GDA Board members Radheshyam Srivastava, Durgesh Bajaj, Pawan Tripathi, block heads Sanjay Singh and Sanjay Yadav, along with officials from the administration, GDA and police, players, and a large number of sports enthusiasts were present.
