The Hindu : Sport : Centre plans to bring sports in Concurrent List

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Feb 17, 2005

Sport

Sport - Sports : General

Centre plans to bring sports in Concurrent List

NEW DELHI, FEB. 16. Sports Ministers from Kerala, Punjab and Bengal have criticised the Union Government's move to bring sports in the Concurrent List.

Participating in the State Sports Ministers' conference here on Wednesday, they termed the move as a wrong step and said the Centre was trying to project it as a solution to all problems in sports. However, Manipur and Mizoram backed the Centre's move.

"We have different sports structures in different States. And it would be difficult to implement a common programme,'' said the Kerala Sports Minister, Dominic Presentation. "Every State has its own culture and ways to go about in preparing its athletes,'' he added.

Punjab Sports Minister, Gurdeep Singh Sodhi, said his government would go by the Olympic Charter.

Union Sports Minister, Sunil Dutt, said it was just the beginning. "It's a good beginning and we are trying to get feedback from different States,'' he said.

"We will assess the situation before the draft Bill comes for debate in Parliament,'' Mr. Dutt said.

Mr. Dutt, in his address, informed that Sports Ministry was in the process of setting up the National anti-doping agency as a registered Government society. The need to speed up the move to form the body had come after India signed the Copenhagen declaration on doping in sports. — Our Sports Reporter

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