6 new sports academies to come up

 Four new sports academies — basketball in Vidyanagar, Bengaluru, swimming in Udupi, tennis in Mysuru and mountaineering in Chitradurga at a cost of Rs 1 crore each — are set to come up in the next financial year, according to the state budget in which a total of Rs 285 crore has been allocated for the Department of Youth Empowerment and Sports.

In addition to these four academies, badminton and golf academies are proposed to be established in the state under Public Private Partnership (PPP).

The Aqua Sports Centre at Varuna lake in Mysuru is also to be developed under the PPP at a cost of Rs 5 crore. State-of-the-art gymnasium facilities in four sports hostels are to be created at a cost of Rs 8 crore. An additional Rs 4 crore has been earmarked for setting up modern gymnastic facilities in Belagavi and Mysuru.

To encourage women to take up sports, the government proposes to build separate fully furnished sports hostels for female athletes in every division at a cost of Rs 1 crore each. Rs 2 crore has been allocated for providing sports kits to differently abled sportspersons and another Rs 2 crore for creating disabled-friendly sports infrastructure. The government has also proposed to create a conducive environment for sports in rural areas through a ‘Yuva Chaithanya’ scheme whereby sports equipment will be provided in all gram panchayats at a cost of Rs 1 lakh per unit, for which a total of Rs 20 crore has been allocated this year.

Starting 2017-18, the Karnataka Kreeda Poshaka Prashasthi will be instituted for awarding Rs 5 lakh to 10 sports promoters annually.