'Substandard' food at sports institute, Punjab Sports Minister livid

Mohali, January 28

Punjab Sports Minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer on Saturday took a serious notice of the “poor quality” food being served to players during a surprise check at the Punjab Institute of Sports (PIS) mess at the Phase 9 Sports Complex in Mohali.

The Sports Minister also ate the food and inspected the food material in the mess. He said the food was not at all satisfactory and was below the required standards. He warned the mess workers present on the spot against the poor quality of food being served and the lack of nutritional food for the players. He called the contractor to the spot and told him that such callosity was not at all tolerable.

He said the state government would not compromise on the health and diet of the players. He made it clear to the contractor that if this happened again, the contract would be cancelled. On the instructions of the Sports Minister, the PIS issued a warning letter to the contractor. He said only quality edible products should be used and it should be ensured that nutritious food, which is mandatory for diet, was served to the players. The Sports Minister also instructed the officers to conduct such checking campaigns across the state and take strict action if any shortcoming is found in the food.

About 350 players of hockey, boxing, wrestling, judo, weightlifting, basketball and gymnastics are taking training at the PIS sports wing. The minister was accompanied by Director (Sports) Amit Talwar.

No compromise on players’ health

• Sports Minister eats food, says not at all satisfactory
• Tells mess contractor no compromise on health of players
• Punjab Sports Minister Meet Hayer during a surprise check at the PIS, Mohali. Tribune Photo