A master plan must be prepared for creating sports infrastructure, coaching to the sportspersons and other related issues, Special Chief Secretary to the Department of Sports, Youth Advancement, Culture and Tourism L.V. Subrahmanyam has told the district officials.
He held a review meeting with Collector N. Yuvaraj, Commissioner of GVMC Pravin Kumar, Vice-Chairman of VUDA T. Baburao Naidu, Joint Collector-II D.V. Reddy, Additional VC of VUDA P.V. Ramesh, District Sports Development Officer June Gallyott, DEO M.V. Krishna Reddy, coaches of the District Sports Authority and others.
Apart from the master plan, he wanted the officials and coaches to spread out to the rural and Agency areas also. Sports clusters should be created in every area and the Sports Authority of AP would provide senior players and coaches to train the children in these clusters. Schools can become coaching centres and the MLA’s constituency development fund can be utilised for infrastructure. Coaching should be given to the children and youngsters in the sports events they like and at the same time there should not be a competition with the district sports associations if they have already established good coaching facilities. Then the DSA could take up coaching in other events. Water sports and adventure sports should be encouraged and the many water bodies and the sea must be utilised, he said.
The Special Chief Secretary wanted Sports Officers of all institutions in the city to be made members of DSA and take their help in improving the sports in district.
A major sports complex of international standards is being planned at Ukkunagaram as suggested by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu. The consent of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant to allot land for the sports complex is awaited. It is proposed in PPP mode but the government would not mind if the VSP builds the stadiums and maintain them.
Synthetic track
The National inter-district athletic meet would be held in November at the sports complex coming up at Kommadi.
A synthetic track would be laid at the complex and the SAAP and SAI would conduct coaching camps at the venue regularly.