COIMBATORE: In a bid to strengthen and promote a sporting culture in government colleges, a Physical Education (PE) period would be introduced under the Sports Promotion Scheme.
The Tamil Nadu State Council for Higher Education has issued a directive in this regard and college principals have welcomed the move.
A recent letter from the Council stated that colleges are advised to reschedule their timetables, earmarking specific periods for sports activities, not less than one hour per week for every class.
Colleges should ensure the Physical Director (PD) is available to assist students and monitor their progress.
PDs should mentor students in their designated sports periods. If PD is unavailable, the institution's head may delegate powers to a professor passionate about sports to serve as the in-charge person.
The scheme is to promote recreational, physical and mental health.
Competitions are the best way to improve training and provide validation. Colleges must ensure participation in at least two competitions per year. New inter-college tournaments may be introduced in the future," the letter further stated.
Official sources say this scheme also aims to ensure that students have access to active and inclusive development opportunities.
The government has already sanctioned funds to colleges to procure basic sports equipment and improve sports infrastructure, said official sources.
College Sports Kit (CSK), which consists of 22 types of equipment catering to 11 sports disciplines such as Athletics, Badminton, Basketball, Carrom, Chess, Cricket, Football, Handball, Volleyball, Silambam, and Throwball, will be distributed to colleges. A CSK is worth Rs 60,000. Apart from CSK, an additional Rs 30,000 will be allocated for college-specific equipment requirements and deep cleaning of the grounds.
A college will receive one CSK if it has fewer than 300 students, two CSK if it has a student strength between 300 and 800, and three CSK if it has more than 800 students. To procure CSK, a district-level procurement committee will be formed, headed by the Collector. As many as 494 CSKs will be distributed to 252 government colleges under the DCE and DOTE across the state," said sources.
Tamil Nadu Government Collegiate Teachers Association general secretary S Suresh welcomed the move and told TNIE that earlier there was no physical education period in government colleges, and physical directors would coach only those who were interested and enrolled under the sports quota.
"When students have a physical education period, they will feel refreshed both physically and mentally, and even those who are not interested can be motivated to take part in sports activities in colleges," he said. Suresh said the government has released funds to purchase equipment for colleges for the first time.
He urged the state government to fill the Physical Director posts in 95 of the 170 government arts and science colleges so that physical education programmes can be run effectively.