CHENNAI: This could change the dynamics of sports in the country. If everything goes as per plan and requisite permission is obtained, the Sports Authority of India (SAI) may field a separate team from different disciplines in various leagues and national competitions. The SAI has already initiated a process in this regard by sending a letter to heads of all its academic institutions and regional centres informing them about the proposed Inter-SAI competitions for all disciplines.
"It has been decided that Inter-SAI competitions for all disciplines may be held, so that the available talent could be identified, ranked and a combined team of SAI can be prepared that can participate in various leagues and national competitions whenever it is permitted. Performance of athletes during the inter-SAI tournament can be a parameter for their retention also," said the letter dated January 31, 2023.
What is not clear is about those athletes who train at the NCOEs and are part of national camps. For the last few years, the SAI has been conducting national camps of each federation at its centres. Institutional teams like Railways, Services, All India Police, which are affiliated with National Sports Federations (NSFs) are already participating in nationals.
A timeline has also been given for conducting the tournament. The regions have to select teams either by organising trials or competitions by February 7. Inter-SAI competition has to be finished before March 5 and the report of the same has to be submitted along with the rank list by the high performance manager by March 15, reads the letter.
To supervise the process and ensure the competitions are conducted smoothly, lead regional directors have been appointed for each discipline. They will be responsible for conducting the competitions in their respective disciplines and also preparing the final ranking of the athletes.
A five-member selection committee has also been constituted for ranking of athletes and selection of a combined team for the Inter-SAI competition for each discipline. The lead regional director of that particular discipline will be the chairperson of the committee. The committee shall also provide the ranking of athletes and suggest their suitability for their selection in the national centre of excellence (NCOE) and SAI training centres (STC).
The letter also says that the lead regional directors can decide the number of teams for a particular discipline if the number of athletes is more in that particular sport. The need for fielding more than one team from any region can also be decided by the lead RD.
"In case, where there is less number of athletes which are not sufficient to constitute a team (team game), the regional director shall have the liberty to take athletes from the NCOE or from any other STC wherever possible. However, as the target is on STC, NCOE athletes can be taken only if the STC athletes are exhausted irrespective of their playing capacities," says the letter.
The lead RD can decide on the venue. The official has to identify any of the STC or regional centre under them where the basic facilities are available to organise the competition for the purpose.
A budget will also be sanctioned for the event including Rs 25,000 each for the opening and closing ceremonies. Other expenditures, which were included in the budget are Rs 20,000 for sports equipment, Rs 30,000 for official/technical, Rs 10,000 for medical expenses and Rs 20,000 for prizes and certificates. The total amount is Rs 1,50,000 but the letter says that the maximum limits can be reduced further as per actual.
The high performance manager of each discipline has to supervise the entire process. The official will also assist the lead RDs to conduct the inter-SAI tournament following which a combined SAI team would be selected.