Commonwealth Games gold medalist Nayanmoni Saikia appointed as DSP

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma presented the appointment letter and a cheque of Rs 50 lakh to her on the occasion of Sports Pension Day organized by the Department of Sports & Youth Welfare to mark the birthday of Assam's first Arjuna Awardee Bhogeswar Baruah.

The Chief Minister also handed over one-time financial assistance of Rs 50 thousand to sportspersons to T Shyamolini Devi of Cachar, Rajani Deori of Dhemaji, Mani Kankana Dutta Baruah and Pallavi Dutta Baruah of Kamrup (Metro).

He also handed over a regular sports pension of Rs 10 thousand per month to sportspersons Y Amrit Kanta Singha and Natum Singha of Cachar, Ranjit Rajkumar of Jorhat and Mousumi Bhuyan of Kamrup (Metro) who have earned medals in national and international sports events.

Dr. Sarma also presented the Bir Chilarai award to outstanding NCC cadets of the state to Chinmoy Biswas, Sukanya Kashyap Mahanta, Biju Namasudra and Tanmoyee Shrutidhara Gogoi. The award carries a medal, certificate and Rs 25 thousand.

Speaking on the occasion, the CM said that Arjuna Bhogeswar Baruah laid the foundation of a glorious journey in the sporting arena of the state by winning the gold medal at the 1966 Asian Games.

Following his footsteps, many young sportspersons of Assam have made a strong presence in international sports events, the Chief Minister said.

Honouring the great contribution of Bhogeswar Baruah in the field of sports in Assam, the government of Assam has been celebrating his birthday as Sports Pension Day in the state since last year.

Dr Sarma also highlighted the glorious history of sports in Assam and recalled the contributions of many renowned sportspersons of the state.

Lauding the achievement of gold medalist of Commonwealth Games Nayanmoni Saikia, the Chief Minister urged her to continue inspiring the young sportspersons.

He also said that the state government took the step to honour the sportspersons of Assam who have excelled in international events with a view to motivate the younger generations to take up sports as a career.

The Chief Minister said that as per the state pports Policy, the step has been taken to provide appointments to medal winners in the Olympics, Asian Games, and Commonwealth Games in class-I posts or services irrespective of their educational qualifications, minimum qualifying age etc.

He informed that the state government also plans to provide jobs to the medal winners of the National Games to be held in Gujarat.

Underlining various steps taken for strengthening sports infrastructure, Dr. Sarma said that the second stadium of Guwahati will be constructed at Chandrapur besides augmenting the infrastructure of Jorhat Stadium.

He also said that the state government has taken steps to build 10 District Stadiums with a financial outlay of Rs 50 crore each.

Dr. Sarma informed that the Central Government has given permission to set up 30 small 'Khelo India Centers' to create a strong environment of sports in the state and arrangements will be made for the construction of another 30 Khelo India Centers.

He said that the construction of 52 stadiums with an expenditure of Rs 12 crores has been completed and construction of another 70 stadiums will start in October.

The government is also planning to build Games Villages at Amingaon and Sarusajai to accommodate 250 players and coaches each, the Chief Minister said, adding that measures will be taken to improve infrastructure to strengthen the sports environment in Assam Police.

For assessment of physical strength and improvement of players in a scientific manner ‘High-Performance Centre’ will be set up at Guwahati and Jorhat at a cost of Rs 22 crore per centre.

Residential quarters with adequate facilities will be constructed at Chandrapur to accommodate foreign coaches, the Chief Minister added.

Dr. Sarma called upon the Assam Olympic Association and the Sports and Youth Welfare Department to take the initiative of the 'Indigenous Sports Festival' in the state and also recognize coaches and sports organizers.

Environment & Forest Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary, Water Reources & IPRD Minister Pijush Hazarika, Handloom & Textiles Minister UG Brahma, Chief Secretary Paban Kumar Borthakur, DGP Bhaskarjyoti Mahanta, Additional Chief Secretary Maninder Singh and Ravi Shankar Prasad, PCCF MK Yadav, senior sports journalist Premadhar Sarma and several other dignitaries were present in the programme.