Says twisted vision and reduced prize money for sportspersons will not help
Straight talk
NEW DELHI: The president of the Archery Association of India and former chairman of the All-India Sports Council (an advisory body of the Central Government) Vijay Kumar Malhotra, on Sunday came out in support of the Union Sports Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar and said the budget for the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi was outrageous.
Ironically, Malhotra, who is also a senior vice-president of the Indian Olympic Association, blamed the Government for its twisted vision for developing sports in the country. “Building flyovers and hotels will not help us win medals. If we are spending Rs 20,000 crore on buildings, the least we can do is spend Rs 1,000 crore over the next four years on the athletes.”
Last week, Aiyar said that he was surprised that nobody had even blinked so far at the mammoth expenditure being planned in the name of the Commonwealth Games.
Malhotra’s target was the Sports Ministry — he blamed them for reducing the support for sportspersons in the country. “In spite of inflation, the Government has reduced the prize money for the gold medal winner of the Commonwealth Games that existed of years ago,” he pointed out.
He also said that the daily allowance for the athlete participating in the Olympics and Asian Games should not have been decreased to $20 from $50. “To compete against cricket and tennis, the Government must ensure there is enough incentive for the youth who take up other sports.”
Malhotra demanded that the number of exposure tours for each discipline should be increased to 10 to 12 trips in a year. “The present system is unfair to sports which are not on the priority list of the government. The Sports Ministry finances only two trips abroad for competition for non-priority sports. How can the performance of athletes improve without participation in major meets?” he asked.
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