HYDERABAD: One hurdle to Hyderabad's emergence as the nation's sports capital will be the Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh's website, www.thesaap.org. But for a photo gallery, the Chief Minister's message and a link to Reachcons, that `designed and developed' it, the site draws a blank.

On display are Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy's smiling visage, Sports Minister M. Satyanarayana Rao, SAAP Chairman M.S. Raj Thakur, both looking quite grim, and a beaming Chitra Ramachandran, Secretary, Youth Advancement, Tourism & Culture Department. Missing from the gallery is G. Kamalavardhana Rao, Vice-Chairman and MD, SAAP.

"Hyderabad is fast emerging as the hottest sports destination," begins the Chief Minister's message. No list mentions events conducted or the magnificent stadia that staged the 2003 Afro-Asian and the 2002 National Games."Sportsstars of the State have emerged and have been encouraged by the Government in all disciplines," continues the message. Who and where are they in this window to Andhra Pradesh's sports achievements? "We hope to facilitate many more sports activities in the State and truly establish our State and the city of Hyderabad in name, fame and excellent sports activity," the letter concluded on March 15, 2005, when the site was perhaps last updated.

What can be done

This site can (a) showcase the State's sports achievers, its sports policy (b) list the calendar of sports events, release of grants to sportspersons(c) accept applications for admission to SAAP-run schemes or post info that benefits sportspersons. Or it could even make public the findings of M/s. Rao, Rao and Thakur, who visited Melbourne during the Commonwealth Games earlier this year, to study the infrastructure.

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