Union Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju on Friday unveiled Nestle Milo’s as title sponsor for the National inter-district junior athletics meet (NIDJAM) — one of the world’s largest talent hunt programmes for a single sport, with over 50,000 young athletes participating in it every year to qualify for the finals.
In the past it has unearthed champions like Neeraj Chopra, Dutee Chand, Navjeet Kaur Dhillon and V. Subha. The initiative is a platform for athletes in the under-14 and under-16 age groups to showcase their talent across 10 disciplines.
Athletics Federation of India (AFI) president Adille Sumariwalla welcomed the initiative. “This year, we are taking it to newer heights by not only increasing the platform’s reach to over 400 districts, but we will also be extending financial support to over 100 district associations across the country as a way of recognising and rewarding their hard work,” he said.
Starting 2019, talent identified at NIDJAM will be trained and groomed by expert coaches at special national camps, in partnership with Khelo India with Olympics 2024 and 2028 as milestones.
The 2019 edition will be held from November 24 to 26 in Andhra Pradesh.
