*JKSC likely to fill vacancies on hire basis
Goldi Sharma
JAMMU, Jan 9: Acute shortage of professional coaches in Jammu and Kashmir Sports Council (JKSC) is continuing to deprive the trainees from the professional training at MA Stadium Jammu either in indoor or outdoor games.
Although, the premier body of sports of Jammu and Kashmir had established indoor halls in every district besides new stadia/playfields but given the paucity of professional coaches these centres are not working properly as expected by Govt during their establishments.
Presently, the sports disciplines including wrestling, table tennis, snooker, lawn tennis and badminton have no professional coaches even in Jammu’s centre MA Stadium, while in cricket, one coach got superannuation last year, and the remaining one is on the verge of retirement.
The posts of Kabaddi and Kho-Kho coaches are also lying vacant after both the coaches were engaged as in-charge managers of Green playfield as well as Kabaddi Ground Jammu, respectively.
“The senior players of different disciplines are imparting training to the budding players in absence of professional coaches but some trainees are sitting ideally during the training hours in these centres,” informed an official.
“The reason behind this scarcity is that for the last many years the Council has not conducted any specific drive for the recruitment of new coaches. Some of them are superannuated and few are on the verge of retirement,” said an official, adding that most interestingly fact is that most of the coaches who were engaged for specialised training were deputed by the JKSC as in-charge managers of different playfields in the districts.
After getting charge of different sports’ fields as in-charge manager, they make distance from imparting training to the registered trainees and remain busy in other official works rather than taking training sessions for which they were engaged in the Sports Council as professional coaches, said another official.
For the last one year, the Council engaged nearly 38 coaches under Khelo India Scheme for newly established Khelo India Centres along with 16 coaches have deputed for Centres of Excellence in the Union Territory including Fencing and other disciplines, said an official, but unfortunately it is insufficient to cater the purpose.
“To fill these vacancies, the Council had sent a proposal to the J&K recruitment agency for their recruitment last year but the agency has yet to take the final decision,” he said.
“Now, the Sports Council is looking a option to fill these vacancies on hire basis during the Council meet which is scheduled to be held in the month of February, wherein the president of the Council (Lt Governor) will preside the meeting,” the official said, adding that if the Council give nod for engaging professional coaches on hire basis which will provide a sigh of relief to trainees in different centres till the recruitment agency compete the process on regular basis.
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