: Tuesday, March 24, 2026 8:01 PM
Chandigarh. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann today presented the report card of the Sports Department under the program ‘Fantastic Four Years, Bhagwant Mann De Naal’. During this, he gave detailed information about changing the face of the sports sector through the sports revolution of the AAP government. After presenting the report card on Irrigation Department, Health Department and Law and Order, the Chief Minister mentioned the next plan for major reforms in sports. Under this scheme, the sports budget has been increased from Rs 350 crore to Rs 1791 crore, the number of coaches has been increased from 500 to 2458 and financial assistance of Rs 15 lakh for Olympic preparation and Rs 8 lakh for Asian Games players is included. Giving details, the Chief Minister mentioned the development of 3100 sports grounds, 3000 gyms, distribution of 17000 sports kits and rapid expansion of ‘Khedaan Watan Punjab Diyan’. The number of players participating in this scheme has increased from 1.5 lakh to five lakh. He said that due to these efforts, Punjab has won the Hockey Asian Champions Trophy for the first time in history and the National Badminton Under-13 Championship after 40 years, thereby emerging the State as the hub of sports in the country. Addressing the press conference, Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann said, “The Asian Games will conclude on October 3-4 and the top six hockey teams will participate in it. For the first time, Punjab has got the opportunity to organize this international tournament and it is a big achievement in the sports field.” He further said, “Apart from this, another international competition in the form of a four-nation tournament has been approved for the state, which will promote hockey in the state.” Highlighting the importance of this tournament, the Chief Minister said, “Despite the dominance of Punjabis in hockey, the state had not hosted any major international hockey tournament till now. For the first time, Punjab will host the Asian Champions Trophy in October, which is the most prestigious hockey tournament in Asia.” He informed that hockey matches will be held at Balbir Singh Senior Hockey Stadium in Mohali and Surjit Hockey Stadium in Jalandhar. The Chief Minister also announced the return of badminton championship. “After 40 years, the state gets to host the National Badminton Championship (Under-13) in Jalandhar. This tournament will be for the Under-13 category and will ensure overall development and promotion of sports in the state,” he said. He further said, “The state government is committed to encourage sports to channelize the immense energy of the youth in a positive direction.” Referring to Punjab’s great sporting heritage, the Chief Minister said, “Punjab has produced many great sportspersons and the state has an age-old association with sports.” He said, “Our Sikh Gurus promoted not only spirituality but also physical fitness through sports. Sri Guru Angad Dev Ji established Mall Akhara for physical fitness at Khadoor Sahib and wrestling and exercises took place under his supervision. Sri Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji made the youth adept in horse riding and archery. Guru Gobind Singh Ji was adept in all types of sports and martial arts of that time. Even today, every year in Anandpur Sahib, the birthplace of the Khalsa, a spectacular display of traditional games is held on the occasion of Hola Mohalla.” Reflecting on Punjab’s contribution to modern sports, Bhagwant Singh Mann said, “Indian hockey team captain Harmanpreet Singh, India’s Australia tour team captain Hardik Singh, Indian men’s cricket team captain Shubhman Gill, Indian women’s cricket team captain Harmanpreet Kaur, Indian basketball team captain Palpreet Singh Brar, former Indian football team captain Gurpreet Singh Sandhu and recent T20 World Cup winners Abhishek Sharma and Arshdeep Singh are all from Punjab.” He further said, “All these players have earned name for the state and the country and are inspiring the youth.” The Chief Minister further said, “The Indian women’s cricket team won the ODI World Cup last year under the leadership of Harmanpreet Kaur, which included players like Amanjot Kaur and Harleen Deol.” “Hockey and Punjab are considered two sides of the same coin and it is impossible to imagine Indian hockey without Punjabi players,” he said. “More than 50 Punjabi hockey players have won Olympic medals and 10 Punjabi players have captained India in Olympic hockey,” he said. Citing historical achievements, the Chief Minister said, “Balbir Singh Sr. and Udham Singh won three Olympic gold medals each and Ajit Pal Singh is the only player under whose captaincy India won the Hockey World Cup in 1975.” He further said, “Great players like Prithipal Singh, Surjit Singh, Harcharan Singh and Surinder Singh Sodhi are from Punjab.” He said that villages like Sansarpur, Khusropur and Mithapur have produced more than 20 Olympians. He said, “India won bronze medal in Tokyo Olympics 2021 after 41 years, led by Manpreet Singh and 9 players.” “The Indian hockey team comprising 10 Punjabi players again won the bronze medal at the Paris Olympics 2024, with Harmanpreet Singh as the captain and top scorer,” the Chief Minister said. Giving information about the upcoming tournament, the Chief Minister said, “Teams from India, Pakistan, South Korea, Japan, Malaysia and China will participate in this mega event.” “Bhangra and Giddha will be presented before the matches as a showcase of Punjabi culture, which will not only attract the spectators but will also inspire the youth towards hockey,” he said. Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann said, “To promote sports, a new sports policy was introduced in the year 2023, under which there is a provision of financial assistance of Rs 15 lakh for the preparation of the Olympics and Rs 8 lakh for the Asian Games.” He further said, “Punjab players won 20 medals in the 2023 Asian Games, which is a historic record.” He said, “The bronze medal winners of the Olympics (Paris 2024) were given Rs 1 crore each and the gold medal winners of the Asian Games were also honored with Rs 1 crore.” “9 Olympic medalists were given PCS and DSP jobs and prize money worth about Rs 100 crore has been distributed in the last four years,” the Chief Minister said. “There was a historic increase in the sports budget to Rs 1791 crore in 2026-27, from only Rs 350 crore in 2023-24,” he said. “The number of coaches has been increased from 500 to 2458 and 324 new coaches have been recruited, including 48 talented players who have been appointed as coaches,” he said. Regarding promotion of sports at the grassroots level, the Chief Minister said, “‘Khedaan Watan Punjab Diyan’ is being organized at the block, district and state levels.” He said, “Players aged between 14 to 60 years participated in these games and around 3.5 lakh players took part in 2023-24, this count increased to 5 lakh in 2024-25.” “Rs 10 crore prize money is being given annually to 10,000 medal winners and Rs 97.3 crore has been spent in three years,” he said. Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann said, “Sports are the most effective weapon against drug abuse in Punjab, hence the state government is promoting sports.” He further said that due to the efforts of the state government, the Kila Raipur Sports Fair was restarted after 14 years in 2025 by making a law, in which bullock cart races were also organised. He said, “Nobody has tried before to revive this rural sports fair, popularly known as Mini Olympics.” The Chief Minister said, “The AAP government is developing 3100 sports grounds at a cost of Rs 1350 crore to promote sports.” “3000 gyms are being equipped with state-of-the-art equipment at a cost of Rs 101.8 crore and 17,000 sports kits worth Rs 50 crore have been distributed to the players,” he said. He further said, “Financial assistance is being provided to the athletes and the daily food allowance of the trained players has been increased from Rs 240 to Rs 480, which includes nutrition based menus at the 13 Centers of Excellence.” Regarding infrastructure, Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann said, “Hockey astroturfs have been replaced in Mohali, Bathinda and Ludhiana and a new synthetic track has been built in Mohali on which Rs 9 crore has been spent.” “113 posts have been created in the Sports Medicine cadre, out of which 92 have been filled and doctors and physiotherapists have been deployed in major cities like Amritsar, Patiala, Ludhiana and Bathinda,” he said.
Read this also – Click to read the news of your state/city before the newspaper.
Web Title-After 40 Years, Punjab Also Gets to Host the Under-13 National Badminton Championship: Bhagwant Singh Mann
