Cong MLA questions Punjab Sports Dept's working, embarrasses govt

Punjab's Congress MLA and former Indian hockey captain Pargat Singh on Tuesday put his party government to acute embarrassment, questioning the "poor functioning of the state Sports Department.

Questioning the working of the Sports Department, the former Olympian, said it is running just on papers.

Singh's made the assertion amid Sports Minister Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi eulogising the department in the House in response to a Calling Attention Motion moved by Akali Dal MLA Pawan Kumar Tinu.

Tinu had sought to draw the sports minister's attention to his department's failure in holding trials for selection of sportspersons at a state sports college in Jalandhar.

Even as the minister was patting his department's work for taking several steps towards promotion and grooming of sports talent in the state, Pargat Singh sought the speaker's permission to have his say on the issue.

I want to draw the minister's attention that trials for the selection of sportspersons take place in January and February. But it is unfortunate that there has been no practical work at the ground level," Congress legislator from Jalandhar Cantt, Singh told the House, embarrassing his party's government.

"This is the reality. We are running this department only on papers. Today, this department does not have a single tender for knickers, said Singh, adding to the government's embarrassment.

Sports Minister Sodhi earlier told the House that the Sports Department had been promoting sports activities in a big way.

He said he hoped many sportspersons from Punjab would win several medals in the 2020 Olympic games.

For creating nursery of young sportspersons and to groom their talent, the Sports Department has established various residential wings and day scholar wings in different schools and colleges, the minister added.

Sodhi told the House that there is a government college under the Department of Higher Education at Jalandhar where hostels have been made for residential wing players to stay there.

At present, 54 players under the residential wing scheme are admitted in the Jalandhar sports college, he said.

In the current session, it has been decided that players with proven talents at the national and state levels should be admitted to these wings. Consequently, the first priority is to be given to participants who represented the state of Punjab in Khelo India national games and medal winners of the Punjab state games and district level games, he said.