PM Modi inaugurates Khelo India Youth Games

What’s in today’s article?

• Why in news?
• Growing Sporting Culture in India
• Recent performances of India in international sports
• Steps taken by the govt to promote sports
• News Summary

Why in news?

• Prime Minister Modi declared the “Khelo India Youth Games 2023” open at the Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai.
• The event, which is being held for the first time in a south Indian state, will feature over 5,600 athletes.

Growing Sporting Culture in India

Recent performances of India in international sports

• Tokyo Olympics 2020
  • India had its best-ever Olympics in Tokyo 2020 - with 7 medals, including an Olympic Gold in athletics, which is a first in the history of India.
  • India also had its best ever Paralympics with 19 medals
• Asian Games 2022
  • India bagged its highest-ever medals (107) in 60 years with 75 per cent more gold medals than in Asian Games 2018.
    • It bagged medals in 16 new sporting categories.
  • The remarkable achievement of Indian women athletes in this tournament is highlighted by the fact that they clinched around 50% of the total medals of Indian contingent.
  • Indian para-athletes too have created history with India's highest-ever medal tally in the Para Asian Games with 111 medals, including 29 Gold medals.
  • This is India's best-ever performance since the inception of the Games where India was ranked 5th in the overall medal tally.
• Other sports
  • This was followed by the Thomas Cup win for the first time in 72 years.
  • Also, the current World Boxing Champion, Nikhat Zareen, is from India.

Steps taken by the govt to promote sports

• Increased budget of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports
  • The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports received a budget allocation of Rs 3397.32 crore for 2023-2024, which is an 11% increase from the previous year.
• Institution involved
  • Various Sports Promotional Schemes across the country are implemented through:
    • Sports Authority of India (SAI),
    • National Centres of Excellence (NCOE),
    • SAI Training Centre (STC),
    • Extension Centre of STC,
    • National Sports Talent Contest (NSTC).
• Schemes
  • The Khelo India Scheme is being implemented by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports through its five verticals which promote sports in the entire country including the rural areas.
    • Khelo India is the basic platform to showcase sporting skills at the national level.
  • Under the 'Talent Search and Development' vertical of this scheme, Khelo India Athletes are identified, selected, and provided annual financial assistance of Rs 6.28 lakh per annum per athlete.
  • The Ministry organizes national-level multisport competitions, namely, Khelo India Youth Games, Khelo India University Games and Khelo India Winter Games.
  • TOPS (Target Olympic Podium Scheme) is another flagship program of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports which is an attempt to provide assistance to India's top athletes.
  • ‘Meet the Champions’ initiative is aimed at making children aware about sports and nutrition with the help of the country’s best sportspersons.
    • It is a unique school visit campaign that was kicked off by Olympic Gold medallist Neeraj Chopra in December 2021.
• Sports Infrastructure - Khelo India Centres (KICs)
  • The launch of 1000 KICs at the district level with employment generation for local coaches has been a significant landmark in the sports ecosystem in India.
  • The Central Government's partnership with various states has resulted in 31 Khelo India Centres of Excellence.
    • These Centres are primed to be state-of-the-art training centres for senior and elite athletes with a focus on specific sporting disciplines.
  • Besides, 257 Khelo India accredited academies, 500 private academies, and 27 adopted schools where Khelo India athletes train added to the strength of the sporting infrastructure.
  • Close to 17,500 playfields have been geo- tagged so that parents can easily find a place for their children to play around their residential area.
• Towards promoting inclusivity in sports
  • Special provisions are made for women athletes, such as organising the Khelo India Women's Leagues to promote their participation in sports.
  • Constant efforts are on to include youngsters from all parts of the country, with special emphasis on Jammu and Kashmir and the LWE-affected areas.
  • There is also a special space of inclusion being created for divyang athletes.
    • In June 2023, a contingent of 198 divyang Indian athletes participated in the Special Olympics Summer Games 2023 in Berlin.
    • The Government extended financial support of Rs 7.7 crore towards the participation of the Indian contingent.
    • It also held a preparatory coaching camp at the Sports Authority of India's JLN Stadium, New Delhi to prepare for the world event.

News Summary

• PM Modi inaugurated the opening ceremony of the 6^th Khelo India Youth Games 2023 in Chennai, Tamil Nadu ( Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium)
  • The games will be played across four cities of Tamil Nadu from January 19 to January 31 featuring 26 sporting disciplines with a mix of conventional sports and traditional ones.
• The mascot for the games is Veera Mangai.
  • Rani Velu Nachiyar, fondly called Veera Mangai, was an Indian queen who waged a war against British colonial rule.
  • The mascot symbolizes the valour and spirit of Indian women, embodying the strength of women power.
• The logo for the games incorporates the figure of poet Thiruvalluvar.

Q1) Which queen is known as Veeramangai?

Rani Velu Nachiyar was the first queen to fight against the British colonial power in India. She is known by Tamils as Veeramangai.

Q2) Who kept Thiruvalluvar Statue in Kanyakumari? 

Located on a rock, right next to the Vivekananda Rock Memorial in Kanniyakumari, the breathtaking statue of Thiruvalluvar was created by the Indian sculptor V. Ganapathi Sthapathi and was dedicated to the people of Tamil Nadu on January 1, 2000 by the then Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu M. Karunanidhi.

Source: PM Modi inaugurates Khelo India Youth Games, says country working diligently to host Olympics in 2036 | PIB