Jammu and Kashmir is witnessing revolution in the sports sector. The UT Government is taking innovative measures to overhaul the sports ecosystem of J&K, ensuring modern sports infrastructure coupled with world class training for the young sporting talent to make J&K a sporting power house. Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha made these remarks after declaring open the Premier League in Jammu here at K.K Hakku Stadium.

Speaking on the occasion, the Lt Governor congratulated the sports department, coaches and family members of the sportspersons and said that J&K is perhaps the first to organize 1250 matches across all the districts in four different disciplines - Football, Hockey, Volleyball and Kabaddi.

It is no less than any festival for around 8500 players participating in the games. The talent showcased by the players on the ground is a result of their immense hard work, determination and support from the family, coaches and the officials of the sports department, he added.The Lt Governor said that the first phase of the premier league was launched in November-December last year in the Kashmir Division and according to initial outlines, it was planned that the matches in all four disciplines would begin simultaneously. But due to the inevitable reasons, it could not be started in Jammu region. Now, with the launch of phase one in the Jammu District, the Premier League has also been started in other districts of Jammu Division.The Lt Governor observed that this Premier League is an ambitious sporting event for the youth which will enhance the quality of competition, performance of the players ensuring their participation in National and International level.While underscoring concrete measures taken by the UT Government for the holistic development of the sports sector in J&K, the Lt Governor observed that for the past few months, the Government has been making untiring efforts for paving a strong foundation for the development of all sports disciplines, sporting infrastructure and allied activities in the UT.Rs 200 Cr under the Prime Minister’s Development Package has been sanctioned for upgradation of sports infrastructure and encouragement of budding talent in the field.  Another Rs 30 crores have been sanctioned by the Government for boosting sports infrastructure, training facilities and providing professional coaches to hone the local talent, the Lt Governor maintained.For promotion of sports at the grass-root level, elected representatives of Panchayats have been roped in and all the Panchayats have been provided with sports kits worth Rs 20,000 each during the recently concluded Back to Village-3 programme as per the local requirements, he added.Last year in November, the Government signed an MoU with Suresh Raina Cricket Academy to develop budding cricketers of J&K to National & International level with a comprehensive training programme at a professional level. Ace Cricketer Suresh Raina is honing the skills of the talented youth from every nook and corner of the UT.In December last year, a selection trial was held in Jammu in which 500 youth from Doda, Kishtwar, Reasi, Rajouri and other areas participated, he said..Global pandemic delayed the development of the sports sector, but in the last few months, the work has taken momentum, and 17 sports projects were completed, while 3 more projects will be completed by March this year.We are working exhaustively for the development of sports infrastructure and allied activities in the UT. A number of multipurpose indoor sports halls, playgrounds, stadia and other sports related facilities have been inaugurated in a short span of time, said the Lt Governor.Last year, in the month of October, Sainik Colony Sports Stadium was inaugurated. Other than this, indoor halls at Kathua, Samba and Rajouri were also inaugurated, he maintained.The Lt Governor observed that all 20 districts of J&K have been given approval for Khelo India State Centres of Excellence. All Centres will be connected with former Champions of the Union Territory. In the first phase, 40 such Centres of Excellence will be established.