Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal along with his Deputy Manish Sisodia on Friday laid the foundation stone for renovation of a sports complex in Pooth Kalan, which will be carried out at a cost of ₹5.1 crore.
The renovation is expected to be completed in six months and will have a synthetic track and football ground among other facilities.
“The modern renovations will help students and sportspersons prepare for international competitions like long jump, high jump, stipple throw, hammer and discus throw, etc.,” Mr. Kejriwal said.
He added that when he campaigned in the villages of Delhi in 2015, many youths complained that there were not enough sports facilities in the city. “I promised them that if AAP forms a government, we will improve the sports facilities as much as no other government has done in the past 70 years. We have developed a lot of sports facilities here in the last five years. International sports facilities have been developed in the villages across Delhi, including the sports complex in Najafgarh, the football ground in Mundela, and the Najafgarh Stadium,” he said.
Mr. Kejriwal also appealed to the students and the people of Delhi to actively play sports for at least an hour in a day.
“I also wish that Delhi wins all the medals for India in the Olympics. The sports facilities here have made this possible now. Delhi has to beat big medal-winner countries like China, England and Japan in the Olympics to gain respect for India. Whoever can do that, is our responsibility now, the government is with you in this,” he said.
Mr. Sisodia said the sports field gave birth to many national players but no government thought of its development.
“When your government was formed in 2015, the players received a very small amount as cash prizes. We have increased it over to three to five times. We planned to help the players when needed. Our government is sponsoring 117 sportspersons from Delhi. We have also initiated the ‘Khelo Aur Aage Badho’ scheme for students,” he said.
