Sportstar National Sports Conclave: Infrastructure the biggest challenge in sport in the Northeast, says adviser to Nagaland CM

While north-east India has brought the country numerous stars from various sports disciplines, the region needs investment in sports infrastructure to take advantage of the abundant talent there, Abu Metha, adviser to the Nagaland Prime Minister, said at the Sportstar National Sports Conclave here on Monday.

He said the Indian government and companies need to invest heavily in sport in the region.

“The Northeast is unique. It has so many challenges. And every day the situation there is very different from that on the mainland. The youth, the people there, have so many other challenges than sport. Everyday Challenges. The uprising has kept youth away from the mainland and normal life for decades,” he said during a panel on sports in the Northeast.

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“Today when you go inland from Nagaland, on the India-Myanmar border, the children there don’t know to get up when ‘Jana Gana Mana’ is played. But, you know what? When Dhoni shoots a six or Neeraj hurls the javelin towards gold, each child jumps from their seat. They support India. They support the tricolor. So my point is the sport where you can bring the youth of the North East into the mainstream, give them a platform and a path to contribute to the process of nation building (sic) and also participate in India’s rise and growth.

“However, the problem starts with the infrastructure. The biggest challenge is infrastructure – physical infrastructure, human resource infrastructure and the lack of ecosystems, especially of smaller states. Apart from Assam, the other states are really challenged in terms of infrastructure and ecosystem as well as human resource capacity. So we need the Indian government to invest more. I think it’s a foregone conclusion that the Northeast’s talent bank needs no explanation when it comes to esports. And predominantly a Mongolian population. Mongoloid people have excellent hand-eye coordination that they can use when playing sports,” Metha said.

Devajit Saikia, Joint Secretary, BCCI said the terrain and weather presented a major challenge in forming a cricket ecosystem in the region. He said it was difficult to find suitable land to build cricket stadiums. But he specified that the board is building indoor stadiums in all seven states.

Weightlifter Mirabai Chanu and boxer Sarita Devi shared their experiences of their careers in sport in Manipur. Mirabai said that the infrastructure in her state is still not up to standard and that the success of the athletes there is more due to their own fire in their stomachs.

Sarita spoke to the audience about the role sport played in helping her break free from the insurgency’s grip.

“I had to fight. We faced many uprisings. We used to be very influenced by these insurgents. I am alive today because of the sport, otherwise I might have died in fake encounters. Sport has changed my life. We used to want to part ways with the country, but after I came to sport I felt the love for my country. We got so much respect and love,” she said.

The Conclave is held in collaboration with Hero We Care, a CSR initiative of Hero Motocorp, ONGC, Jain University, Vajiram & Ravi, Institute for IAS Examination, Cric HQ, ShivNaresh and News X. The conclave will be broadcast live on sportstar.thehindu. com.

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