Credit to Govt for revival of State Olympic Games
- The People's Chronicle Editorial :: August 27, 2022 -
INAUGURATION of the second edition of Manipur State Olympic Games 2022 on Friday will not only help give fresh thrust towards rekindling interest in sports among the youngsters but will also definitely aid in lessening the impact of drugs and substance abuse in the society.
As reports of various types of psychoactive drugs seized from different parts of the state on a daily basis suggest abundance of the addictive substances and vulnerability of the youthful population to fall prey to addiction, sports remain one of the best options left to defeat the devilish intention of the drug dealers to destroy the society.
In fact, efforts of various organisations to sustain the sports movement and culture at the grassroots level had been of great help in preventing the youngsters from using drugs and liquor and in producing world class sportspersons.
Even, during the height of insurgency and widespread usage of heroin during the 1980s and 1990s, Manipuri sportspersons continued to excel at the national and international level of competitions thereby corroborating the role of sports in keeping the youth hale and hearty.
The insurgency/drug ravaged decade and the agitation-infested 2000s weren't conducive for practising and organising sports competitions unlike at the juncture which remains one of the most peaceful times and the problem is limited to only drug infestation.
With improvement in the law an order situation, easy access to sports technology and medicines, abundant training centres and satisfactory supply of electricity, there is great prospect for vigorous promotion of sports among the youngsters and safeguard them from the drug menace.
With the variety of sport disciplines that the Manipuri sportspersons have been dominating, the only effort that the government needs to make is to help ensure that young athletes get the right training, direction and development to hone their skills to reach and excel at global platforms.
Another heartening aspect of Manipur is that players from the state have not been predominantly male as female athletes too have been at the top of their preferred discipline in the country and internationally.
With the state all set to see full-throttle operation of the sports university, it is obvious that things will only get better for sportspersons of the state and provide them the opportunity to reap the fruit of their hard-work and resilience through job security and lucrative contracts with reputed companies.
There was a time when being a sports person was not a very lucrative career choice and parents would push their children to focus on formal education but times are changing as is evident from footballers in the country living life envious for many.
As all that is needed is the right push and correct backing by the government to produce world class players, it is commendable that the present government under sportsman/journalist turned politician chief minister N Biren has envisioned revival of the Manipur State Olympic Games 2022 after over 30 years.
There might be financial constraints in the smooth conduct of the proposed yearly inter-district competition but it is suggested that budgetary deficits, if any, shouldn't be the reason to keep the games in the cold storage yet again.
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