This Article is From May 12, 2011

Cricket to be compulsory subject in all government schools in Bangalore

 Cricket to be compulsory subject in all government schools in Bangalore
Bangalore: India's victory in the cricket World Cup has become the theme at various parties and events across the city. However, it also seems like the state education board too is bowled over by the win.

With the thought of introducing cricket as a compulsory curriculum in all schools across the state, the education board has settled for a full-fledged programme, which includes a tournament that starts at the district-level with the best talent being selected for a state-level tournament.

Government schools across the city, which previously focused on low-budget sports such as football and kho-kho, have now started forming cricket teams along with appointing physical trainers who will double up as coaches.

"If one looks at the state of infrastructure in most public schools today, it is almost impossible to imagine how they could afford to set up infrastructure suitable for playing a relatively expensive sport like cricket," said a Karnataka State Cricket Association member.

Sports goods supplier Sohail Khan said, "It would cost a minimum of Rs 2,000 per player even for basic cricket apparel such as a bat, gloves, pads and a helmet. This makes it difficult for students of public schools to afford, and also it would cost about Rs 20,000 at a minimum to get a ground with a pitch and nets."


Khan, a physical trainer in a public school in the city said, "I don't see how this can be possible as our school is not even able to provide students with proper sporting shoes for athletics. With cricket being a more budget-intensive sport, I am unsure about this programme's success."

Josephine Flora, a senior sports faculty member at St Joseph's Indian High School, said, "This programme can be successful only if the government dedicates a decent amount of money only for cricket, and more importantly, the money needs to reach the students."

However, while private schools can afford to invest in the infrastructure for such sporting activities, some government schools lack even basic infrastructure. In such a situation, will they be able to provide a similar platform to their students?

Flora explained, "Some private schools have taken an interest in cricket and sought the help of expert coaches from the Sports Authority of India. Once a school plans to introduce such a course, they will have to bring in a coach to train the students, a physical education teacher to guide them and also develop basic infrastructure."

Physical trainers in government schools presently have little or no expertise in the game, and hence the major focus is on theoretical education rather than practical training.

Many teachers suggest that in such a case, the best solution is for the Sports Ministry to work closely with the Education Ministry, so that government schools are provided with expert trainers and a budget is allocated for infrastructure development in such schools.
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