(a) whether the game of football is popular in the country;
(b) if so, the details thereof;
(c) whether the Government has taken any steps to encourage and promote football among the children in the country; and
(d) if so, the details thereof?
(a) whether the game of football is popular in the country;
(b) if so, the details thereof;
(c) whether the Government has taken any steps to encourage and promote football among the children in the country; and
(d) if so, the details thereof?
THE MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) FOR SKILL DEVELOPMENT, ENTREPRENEURSHIP YOUTH AFFAIRS & SPORTS (SHRI SARBANANDA SONOWAL)
(a) Yes, Madam.
(b) Football has been included as an important event in the school games and played in the categories of under-14, under-17 & under-19 for boys and girls. Also, football is included in the University games, conducted by the Association of Indian Universities. Subroto Mukherjee Sports Education Society (SMSES) holds separate national & international football tournaments at the school level. All India Football Federation organises a number of tournaments for senior and junior players across the country.
(c) The primary responsibility for the development and promotion of a sports discipline rests with the concerned recognized National Sports Federation (NSF), which in the case of football is the All India Football Federation (AIFF). The Government supplements the efforts of the NSFs by providing financial assistance for holding national/international sports events in India, participation of sportspersons/teams in international sports events abroad, training/coaching of national level sportspersons/teams through Indian and foreign coaches, procurement of equipment and consumables etc. as per agreed Long Term Development Plans. Financial assistance, at par with the NSFs, is given to SMSES for organizing National Championships at the School level.
The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports has been extending support for improving the level of sports including Football through its various other Schemes like Rajiv Gandhi Khel Abhiyan (RGKA) and Urban Sports Infrastructure Scheme (USIS). Under RGKA, financial assistance of Rs. 1.75 crore will be provided for construction of a sports complex in each rural block of the country to cater to various sports disciplines including Football.
The Scheme of USIS provides for giving grants, inter-alia, for creation of sports infrastructure projects such as football/hockey turf/multi- purpose halls/ athletic tracks, etc. Under the scheme, State Governments, local civic bodies, Schools, Colleges, Universities and Sports Control Boards are eligible for assistance.
To generate interest among the children to play football, Government of India considered the proposal of AIFF and furnished the Declaration and Guarantees of the Government, sought by AIFF for their bid to host Under-17 FIFA World Cup in India in 2017.
At State level, it is the responsibility of state level federations and the concerned state governments to develop various sports disciplines. Apart from this, the Sports Authority of India is running the following promotional schemes in which football is one of the disciplines and training by experienced coaches with scientific back up is provided to the players to achieve excellence at national/international level:
(a) National Sports Talent Scheme (NSTC)
(b) Army Boys Sports Company (ABSC)
(c) SAI Training Centre (STC)
(d) Special Area Games (SAG)
(e) Centre of Excellence (COE)