Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has announced a big plan to build playgrounds in all 12,500 villages of the state. This move is aimed at encouraging the youth to take up sports instead of falling into drug addiction.
In the first phase, playgrounds will be built in 3,083 villages. Mann said the goal is to provide good sports facilities so that young people stay busy in positive activities. He believes that if youth are given the right environment and opportunities, they will choose sports over drugs.
“This is part of our ‘War on Drugs’ campaign,” said Mann. He added that many Punjabi players are doing well at the national level — like Harmanpreet Singh (hockey), Shubman Gill (cricket), and Gurpreet Singh Sandhu (football) — and are role models for the youth.
The plan includes building athletic tracks, installing Astroturf, and hiring national-level players as coaches. Sports nurseries will also be set up for groups of villages. These nurseries will have hostels, mess facilities, and homes for the coaches. Each nursery will focus on the most popular sport in that area.
Most village panchayats have offered land for the playgrounds, and even some NRIs have come forward to give land for free, Mann said.
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