The government is working on a proposal to set up a football academy for women, Minister for Industries E. P. Jayarajan said here on Friday.
He was speaking after launching works of over ₹15 crore to upgrade the infrastructure at the G.V. Raja Sports School campus at Aruvikkara near here.
Emphasising the importance of G.V. Raja Sports School in the sports map of Kerala, Mr.Jayarajan said the project would be completed in a year, fully equipping the institution to meet the present and future requirements like hosting high-profile events and imparting world class training to budding talents..
“Plans are also on the anvil to set up a women football academy in the State,” he said. “The sports directorate has been directed to complete the projects on time. The government has given administrative sanction of ₹6.38 crore for the synthetic track, ₹4.65 crore for the hockey turf and ₹4.33 crore for the football turf,” the Minister said. The material for the hockey turf would be sourced from France and those for the synthetic track would be imported from Germany.
Noting that sports development is a major priority, he said the government had implemented a project to provide jobs for sportspersons who win gold medals in national and international competitions.
On the preparations for the Olympics, the Minister said the government was planning to enlist the services of foreign coaches under the ‘Operation Olympia’ project.
Synthetic tracks
A synthetic track of international standards, a synthetic hockey turf and building a synthetic football turf on the campus are the major works being undertaken.
K. S. Sabarinathan, MLA, presided over the function and A. Sampath, MP was the chief guest. Sports Director Sanjayan Kumar, President, Kerala State Sports Council T.P. Dasan, and Head Master, G.V. Raja School, Rajendran, were also present.
