Jaipur, 23 Aug. Chief Minister Mr Ashok Gehlot on Monday unveiled the Rajiv Gandhi Rural Olympic Games mascot 'Sheru' at the indoor hall of Sawai Mansingh Stadium. He also released the theme song for the event.
He said that Rural Olympic Games are being organised in the state from August 29. A budget provision of Rs 40 crore was set aside for this purpose. The objective of the event is to identify rural sportspersons, hone their talents, encourage them and promote sportsmanship among the general public. Along with youths, lakhs of elders and women have also registered themselves to participate in the mega sporting event.
Mr Gehlot said that the Rural Olympics is open to all age groups. About 30 lakh players are participating in these games and 2 lakh teams have already been formed. He said if talented players of the state are identified and given proper training, they can bring laurels to the country and the state at national and international level. The Chief Minister said that sports grounds have been prepared by the State Government at Gram Panchayat level for the event. All kinds of facilities are being made available to players and a new sports culture is being created in the state. He asked the local public representatives to enthusiastically play their part along with the general public in the successful organisation of the games.
The Rajiv Gandhi Rural Olympic Games will be organised from August 29 to September 1 at gram panchayat level, from September 12 to September 15 at block level, from September 22 to September 25 at district level and from October 2 to October 5 at state level. The games are being organised in coordination with the Sports Department, Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Department, Education Department, Health Department and local administration. The games will include six sports Kabaddi (Boys/Girls Category), Shooting Ball (Boys Category), Kho-Kho (Girls Category), Volleyball (Boys/Girls Category), Tennis Ball Cricket (Boys/Girls Category) and Hockey (Boys/Girls Category).
Mr Gehlot said that the State Government has hiked the incentive amount given to players who have won medals at national and international level including Olympics, Commonwealth, Asiad. A gold medallist is now being given Rs 3 crore, silver medallist Rs. 2 crore and bronze medallist Rs. 1 crore. Apart from this, the prize money of Rs 30 lakh, 20 lakh and 10 lakh for winning gold, silver and bronze medals in Asian and Commonwealth Games has been hiked to Rs 1 crore, 60 lakh and 30 lakh, respectively. He said that 229 outstanding players have been given government jobs under out-of-turn policy. Apart from this, pension scheme has also been implemented for coaches. A provision of 2 percent reservation has been made for sportspersons in government jobs. This has secured the future of players and coaches.
The Chief Minister said that the State Government has taken major decisions to strengthen the sports infrastructure in the State. Under the Major Dhyan Chand scheme, a sports stadium is being constructed in each block in phased manner. Residential Para Sports Academy is being constructed in Jaipur and Jodhpur for para players. He said that High Performance Sports Training and Rehabilitation Centers have been established in Jaipur and Jodhpur. Para Academy is going to be set up for differently abled players in Jodhpur and Jaipur. A world-class stadium has been constructed in Bikaner. Efforts are being made to extend excellent sports facilities up to the gram panchayat level.
President of the Sports Council, Smt. Krishna Poonia said that the event is already garnering massive response from rural areas of the state. Children, young and old are all engaged in preparations. She added that unprecedented work has been done in sports in the state during the tenure of Chief Minister Shri Ashok Gehlot.
Education Minister Dr. BD Kalla, Industries Minister Smt Shakuntala Rawat, Revenue Minister Mr Ramlal Jat, Minister of State for Sports Mr Ashok Chandna, PCC prisedent Mr Govind Singh Dotasra, Chief Secretary Smt. Usha Sharma, RCA President Mr Vaibhav Gehlot, Chairman of Farmers' Commission Mr Mahadev Singh Khandela, Chairman of Wasteland Development Board Mr Sandeep Chaudhary, Chairman of Rajasthan Youth Board Mr Sitaram Lamba, President of Social Welfare Board Smt Archana Sharma, Vice-President of Rajasthan Sports Council Shri Satveer Choudhary, MLA Shri Rafiq Khan others were present.
