To promote sports and restore old glory of the State, Punjab Government has decided to engage one lakh sportspersons in sports facilities in next three years as compared with present capacity of 20,000. “The State Government has notified Sports Policy-2019 to give more incentives to the sportspersons. This policy envisages that more and more numbers of sportspersons to be engaged in sports arena so that broad base for selection of quality product could be established,” said the state Sports director Davinder Pal Singh Kharbanda.
He said that according to the policy, the Sports Department will increase the number of sportspersons to one lakh in next three years as compare to 20,000 at present by engaging them with various sports activities.“For this purpose, 25,000 players would be involved every year by the Department with the help of 18,000 volunteers in the villages and blocks such as retired army officials, DPEs, PETs and sportspersons apart from its coaches,” he said, adding that the players will be contacted and they will be engaged on roll through these volunteers.
Some sports videos will also be displayed in the villages and volunteers to inspire and motivate youngsters in rural pits of the state towards sports.
Reiterating the State Government’s commitment to probable and concerted efforts for the expansion of sports activities, Kharbanda said that the Sports Department was already running the coaching centres, day-scholar wings, residential wings and academies in the State to promote and encourage players towards sports.
The establishment of Punjab State Institute of Sports (PIS) is a milestone towards the upliftment of sports in the State as 1800 elite sportspersons have been admitted to give them scientific training in these 12 Centres of Excellence in all over the State where free lodging and boarding,
education, training and medical facilities are being provided.