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IOA puts CWG onus on Centre
Indian Olympic Association President Narinder Batra on Monday made it clear that the national sports governing body cannot send athletes for the upcoming Commonwealth Games (CWG) on its own cost as it still needs government grant for its functioning.
New Delhi: Indian Olympic Association President Narinder Batra on Monday made it clear that the national sports governing body cannot send athletes for the upcoming Commonwealth Games (CWG) on its own cost as it still needs government grant for its functioning.
Batra made the comment while announcing sponsorship partners of the Indian contingent for the April 4-15 CWG in Gold Coast, Australia. "To be (financially) independent is good. But in India, except for cricket, no sports body can function without grant from the government. So, we will continue to get grant from the sports ministry," said the IOA chief said in the presence of Union Sports Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore.
Batra also announced that India will be represented by 227 athletes, which will be the second biggest-ever contingent.
Edelweiss Financial Services Limited, India's leading diversified financial company, will be the sponsor of the Indian contingent for the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta and the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo as well as the 2018 and 2019 National Games.
The announcement was made in the presence of the IOA top brass, including Secretary-General Rajeev Mehta, and sportspersons like Dipa Karmarkar, HS Prannoy, Jitu Rai, Manu Bhaker, Anu Raj Singh, Manpreet Singh, Rupinder Pal Singh and Rani Rampal.
Rathore, on his part, said that transparency in the functioning of the IOA and National Sports Federation was of paramount importance in the government's bid to raise the sporting profile of the country. He said that provisions regarding the transparency in the functioning of the sports bodies will be incorporated into the Sports Code.
"Transparency in the functioning of the IOA and the NSFs is very important and we will incorporate the provisions regarding how to make them transparent in the Sports Code. The IOA, the NSFs and the Sports Ministry should sit together and find out what is required to make improvement in the functioning of the sports bodies," the minister said.He also called upon the IOA and the NSFs to try and generate revenue on their own, taking advantage of the recent interests shown by the corporate sector to invest in sports.
"The biggest sponsor of Indian sports till now has been the government of India and we will continue to do so," he said."We were not just providing funding for their training, we went a step ahead by providing Rs 50,000 per month pocket allowance so that they do not have to look over the shoulders of their parents for other requirements," Rathore said.
