The youth represents the most dynamic and vibrant segment of Bharat’s population. Bharat is one of the youngest nations in the world with about 65% of its population being under 35 years of age. The youth in the age group of 15-29 years comprise 27.5% of the population.
Developing a fit body and a tough mind strengthens the persona. It is very essential for every person to follow a sport or exercise regime to remain healthy.
Additionally, it also inculcates a sportsman spirit, fighting spirit, passionate dedication and a cool and composed mindset.
There have been various traditional sports played in our country since centuries. They are our cultural identity.
Narendra Modi ji is great believer of the “Rurban” model of development which was also Mahatm Gandhiji’s road map for Bharat, at independence.
Modi wishes to retain the personal identity of tribals and rural area population along with providing them a platform to exhibit their talent to the world.
During Narendra Modi Ji’s tenure as CM of Gujarat, he initiated the Khel Maha Kumbh to promote the games and sports which were part of their lifestyle.
Taking this conviction forward, the Modi ji led government, during its first tenure, ensured utmost importance to Sports and related development.
The Khelo India School Games was inaugurated by the Hon. Prime Minister on 31st January 2018. The opening ceremony was based on the Guru-Shishya tradition. From 2019, Khelo India School Games were re-named to Khelo India Youth Games after the Indian Olympic Association came on board in September 2018.
In February 2019, the Hon. Prime Minister launched the Khelo India App at the Youth Indian Parliament to promote Sports and Fitness.
In February 2020, Hon. Prime Minister inaugurated the first edition of the Khelo India University Games in Cuttack to give athletes the exposure of multi-disciplinary events at the university level.
The significant objective of this programme is mass participation of youth in annual sports competitions.
Identifying talent and providing guidance and nurturing them through existing Sports academy or creating new set ups by the Central Government or the State Government or in PPP model and building Sports infrastructure at Moffusil, Tehsil, District, State level, etc.
The significant goal of the entire programme is to identify talent at the grassroot level and a dedicated talent hunt committee has been formed to do the job. The talent hunt committee identifies the top two sportspersons from each sport and they are given annual scholarship of INR 5,00,000 for 8 years.
The competition structure covers the entire nation. The competition is held at Block/District/State and National level.
The game or sports popular in the particular area is chosen at Block/District/State level.
The competition is conducted for the five distinct age groups, e.g. age above 6 & under 12,above 12 & under 18, above 18 & under 36, above 36 & under 50 and above 50.
The inaugural 2018 games had students competing for 209 Gold medals across 16 sports.
Badminton, Boxing, Basketball, Gymnastics, Judo, Kabbadi, Volleyball, Wrestling, Football, Kho-Kho, Weightlifting, Hockey, Shooting and Swimming, Athletics were the major sports included in the event.
In December 2020, four indigenous games such as Gatka, Kalaripayattu, Thang Ta and Mallakhambha were added.
Only selected school kids below the age of 17 are eligible to compete. In the individual sports, top 8 sportsperson from the School Games Federation of India’s National School Games,4 nominations from the federation, one from Central Board of Secondary Education, one from the host state and 2 wild card entries for the individual event would be selected.
Khelo India University Games (KIUG) is a national level multi-sports event, where athletes from Universities across the country compete in different sports disciplines. It is organised by the Sports Authority of India (SAI) and Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports along with Association of Indian Universities, Indian Olympic Association and National Sports Federation. It is the largest University level sports competition in Bharat.
The Khelo India University Games have been formed to identify and train capable athletes in the age group of 18 to 25 years for the Olympics and the Asian Games.
The journey of Delhi’s Payal shows how the Khelo India platform has increased yhe possibilities of climbing up the ladder of success and fulfilling her dream of representing nation in Sports and winning medals.
Payal hails from a humble background. Her father belongs to the tailoring profession and her mother is a homemaker. With no background of sports, nor the financial capacity to get professional training, her dream and capability could have been wasted.
But, the Hon. Prime Minister’s passion and vision of opening up doors of every opportunities for people from the deprived class has come as a boon in Payal’s life.
Earlier, taking up Sports as a profession was unthinkable for underprivileged class as the training infrastructure was out of their reach.
Now, with a changed scenario, Payal has won a Gold medal at the Khelo India contest in Athletics and is currently being trained to represent the National level. NYKS and Gayle have taken up the responsibility of sponsoring her training, which includes physical and mental health training as well as provision of healthy diet and proper medication during the training period.
There are many upcoming “sport stars” being nurtured to shine out on global platform.
Until a few years ago, the lack of Sports related policy or necessary infrastructure made the Olympics and other global achievements a far-flung dream.
The Modi Government's inspiring strategic aid has ensured a bright future for our sportspersons.
“Khelo India” will surely write nation’s sports history in glittering words.