LUCKNOW, July 28: Union Information and Broadcasting and Sports Minister Anurag Thakur on Friday said that 1,000 centers of Khelo India will be opened across the country in the next three years and national level athletes will be given jobs at these centers.
Addressing the girls athletes at KD Singh Babu stadium here in Lucknow, Thakur said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi increased the sports budget which was merely 864 crore in 2013 to Rs 2,400 crore.
“Khelo India, Youth Games, University Games and Winter Games are the vision of the Prime Minister. The budget of Khelo India has been increased by Rs 400 crore,” he said.
He said under the leadership of the Prime Minister the representation of women in sports has increased.
He said that Mirabai Chanu and PV Sindhu have inspired girls and women of the country to do better in the field of sports by excelling in sports.
The Union Minister said, “Our daughters have made the country proud by winning medals in Tokyo and Rio Olympics. Players are being encouraged by successfully organising sports competitions through events like Khelo India and MP Sports Competition.” He said that work is being done to enhance the sports talents of the country through Khelo India. “This is the reason that now the players of our country are hoisting the tricolor in international competitions,” he said.
Thakur said that the Uttar Pradesh government led by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has done extraordinary work for the development of sports in the state which has never happened before.
“In the last Youth Games held in Haryana, 12 records were broken. This time 12 players broke 25 national records, out of which most of the records were broken by female players,” he said.
The Sports Minister said that India will never accept China issuing stapled visas to players from Arunachal Pradesh. (UNI)
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