SHILLONG, MAY 19: Sports and Youth Affairs Minister Wailadmiki Shylla on Tuesday said Union Sports Minister and Minister of State, along with senior sports officials, are scheduled to visit Shillong on May 28 for a two-day Eastern Zone meeting of the Bharat Group.
“Just yesterday I received a verbal message. As of now I have not received anything official in writing, but according to the message, they have informed us that the Union Minister of Sports along with the Minister of State and different sports officials will be coming on May 28 to Shillong,” Shylla told reporters.
He said the meeting on May 28 and 29 will bring together state teams under the Bharat Group. “This meeting will be for the Eastern Zone including all North Eastern states, West Bengal and Odisha,” he said.
The minister added that the state will renew its agreement to host the National Games in 2027 during the visit. “Last week, our team from Shillong went to Delhi to sit with the sports ministry regarding renewal of the agreement for hosting the National Games in 2027,” Shylla said.
He explained that the original agreement was signed nearly eight years ago. “It has been almost seven to eight years since we signed the agreement and there are some corrections to be made because it has been quite a long time. That is why we want to renew this agreement.”
According to Shylla, the Union Minister suggested signing the revised agreement in Shillong. “When we spoke to them, the minister himself said it is better that we do it here in Shillong. So, that will happen on May 30,” he said.
On the status of the agreement, Shylla said, “We have already signed the agreement but there are some corrections which are being made from the Indian Olympic Association (IOA).”
Asked for details of the corrections, he said, “I have not got the full details because I was not part of that meeting. My team from here went, so right now they are preparing it. In a few days we will get full details.”
On preparations for the National Games, the minister said work is progressing. “Preparation is going well as of now. I am not just saying this as a sports minister but I am saying this after the many visits from the sports ministry and last time from IOA and many people who came and visited and did the inspection on the site. They were also quite satisfied with our preparation right now,” he said.
He assured that venues are in place for the event. “For different disciplines, there will be separate fields of play. Right now, we have sufficient numbers of grounds for indoor and other events and we even have backup grounds also,” Shylla said.
On the budget, the minister said the state is currently funding the games. “The total budget we are looking into is Rs 600 crore. As of now, this will be from the state’s exchequer but we are pursuing it with the central ministry,” he said.
“However, I cannot say for sure. We never know as it depends on the central government, but as of now, we are going from the state fund,” he added.
By Our Reporter
