Punjab Sports Dept fails to provide equipment to kids

Indervir Grewal

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, July 30

It’s hard to imagine running sports academies without providing the proper training and playing equipment to the athletes, but that’s exactly what is happening in Punjab.

The Punjab Sports Department has not been regularly providing the necessary equipment to the sportspersons in most of its day-scholar and residential wings in the last few years.

While some have not received basic equipment like hockey sticks and balls (in different games) in over two years, most have not received playing kits, including shoes, for almost six years.

“We don’t get the playing equipment regularly. The last time we got hockey sticks was in December last year, when the session was about to end,” said a coach at one of the Department’s hockey wings.

“That’s usually been the case in the past — we get the equipment at the end of a season, in December or January. That was after two years and those weren’t enough — only about 20 for over 30 trainees. We haven’t received playing kits or shoes for the last two years. Apart from this, I have been asking for medicine balls, training cones for over six years but haven’t got anything.”

Another hockey coach said that they hadn’t got the kit in over six years. Almost all the coaches said that sticks provided by the Department were of very poor quality. “Some don’t last even one session on the synthetic turf. We have received only a few carbon composite sticks in the last few years,” said the coach.

The case is the same with other sports, as the sports wings either get poor quality equipment or nothing at all. “Just before a big tournament, the athletes who have been selected get tracksuits and shoes. The others get nothing. I asked for a high jump mat last year, and haven’t got it yet,” said an athletics coach.

Burden on parents

So the playing kits are arranged by the coaches. These are sponsored by goods manufacturers or distributors or a stray sports enthusiast. What about the basic items like shoes or hockey sticks?

“Sometimes we can arrange a few pairs of shoes or a few sticks, but usually the trainees have to buy their own,” said a hockey coach.

A decent wooden hockey stick can cost from Rs 500 to 1500 while a composite stick costs from Rs 1500. A basic pair of shoes starts at Rs 600.

“The wooden sticks don’t last for more than three months on the synthetic turf. The shoes these kids buy last for about four months; that’s three pairs of shoes in a year,” said the hockey coach.

Almost all of these sportspersons come from lower middle-class families and spending Rs 5000 on equipment every year can be a big burden.

Punjab’s newly-appointed Director Sports, Rahul Gupta, said he was not aware of these problems. The new session has already started, but Gupta said it could take about one-and-a-half months for this year’s equipment to be distributed. “The bidding process for the new tenders will take 15 days. After that it will take another month for the order to be placed and the equipment to be distributed,” said Gupta, who joined on Monday.