IEP Imphal/Chandigarh, April 25
Punjab Sports Minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer spoke about nurturing the talent of sportspersons at the grassroots level in order to take the country forward in the field of sports. Along with this, he also stressed on increasing the scope and time of trials to bring in the right talent. Speaking during the two-day National conference organised by the Union Sports Ministry and Manipur Government, of the Sports Ministers of all the States/UTs of the country at Imphal, Meet Hayer praised the unique initiatives taken by various states in the field of sports. He also mentioned the measures being taken by Bhagwant Mann led State Government. He said that everyone should take inspiration from each other and move forward together. During this session, Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur while endorsing the issues raised by Meet Hayer, emphasizing giving boost to the talent hunt program. Meet Hayer gave the example of athlete Akshdeep Singh of Punjab and said that the athlete who came to join the army, was recognised by the coach and now he has qualified for the Paris Olympics. Appreciating the efforts of the Bihar Government, Meet Hayer said that the sports trials of the Punjab Institute of Sports are also being conducted for a month instead of a day so that the real talent comes out. The Sports Minister further said that for the preparation of big sports events including the Olympics, attention will have to be paid to the grooming of players at the ground level. The Punjab Government will give Rs. 16000 per month for one year to the National Medal winners under the Hockey Olympian Balbir Singh Senior Scholarship Scheme which will motivate the players for coming out with good performances. Talking about the talent of Punjabi sportsmen, Meet Hayer gave the example of wrestling competitions of the Commonwealth Games where wrestlers Amarveer Singh Dhesi and Mandhir Singh Cooner who won medals from Canada and England respectively were of Punjabi origin and the other medal winner from Pakistan was also from West Punjab. He said that Punjabis have immense potential and the State Government is working tirelessly to provide a platform to emerging players by identifying this talent. After the conclusion of the session, Sports Minister Meet Hayer also visited the National Sports University, Imphal where he saw new advanced technologies in the field of Sports Science. He also visited the Sports Psychology Lab. He said that to fulfill the dream taken by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann to make Punjab the number one state in the country in sports, the Government is making continuous efforts and is learning from wherever there is something new to be imbibed. The Minister was accompanied by Director Sports Amit Talwar.
