Rajyavardhan Rathore asks corporate companies to come forward and invest in development of sports

Union Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore on Friday encouraged the investors to invest money for the development of sports in India.

The sports minister declared that the government is planning a project that will nurture the skills of 8-10 years of age in the country and provide them scholarships and financial support.

“At any given time there are 10 crore students in schools. We will partner with school boards, state governments and even the armed forces. They will identify and map the physical fitness of 8-10-year-olds based on a simple test,” Rathore said at the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Global Sports Summit Scorecard’.

Following the initial tests, the number of students will be filtered to 5000 children and then to 1000 students, on which super advance test will be carried on.

At @CIISports #Scorecard2018, spoke about the rise of sports in India.

From talent identification & support staff training to infra support & financial security, we are creating an enabling ecosystem that will help athletes excel.
#MakingIndiaPlay pic.twitter.com/d6gX3fDMeb

— Rajyavardhan Rathore (@Ra_THORe) July 26, 2018

“The right physical talent for the right sport will be identified and Rs 5 lakh scholarship will be given to them for eight years so that by the time the child is 16 years he is ready to be a champion. This is the time to invest in sports,” he said.

The minister also insisted that no athlete needs to feel shy to ask for funds as “there is no dearth of money.”

“From 1990 till date, all Olympic medallist and potential medallist have been funded by the National Sports Development Fund (NSDF). It’s a fund that was largely supported by the PSUs, now we are opening it to the entire country,” Rathore said.

Rathore said that government is also chalking out a plan of a manufacturers’ summit later in 2018, where multinational companies with their Indian counterparts will collaborate to tell the government of the policies and modifications needed to start manufacturing sports equipment in India.

“By 2019, the sports industry will reach USD 75 billion, it is not only good for individuals but also for the corporates. This is the time to be a part of the Indian sports story,” he concluded.