MoS Raksha Khadse chairs high-level meeting on strengthening Maharashtra’s sports ecosystem

Posted on by Vividh Bharathi

New Delhi, July 23 (IANS) The Union Minister of State for Youth Affairs & Sports, Raksha Khadse, chaired a high-level meeting with senior officials of the Government of India and the Government of Maharashtra to deliberate on a comprehensive roadmap for strengthening the state’s sports and youth development ecosystem.

Reinforcing the spirit of cooperative federalism, the discussions focused on institutional reforms, high-performance sport, athlete development and governance, to position Maharashtra as a leading sporting state while contributing to India’s long-term sporting ambitions.

The meeting was attended by Pravinsinh Pardeshi, Chief Executive Officer, MITRA; Hari Ranjan Rao, Secretary (Sports), Government of India & Director General, Sports Authority of India; Ram Singh, Secretary, Sports Authority of India; Ranjit Singh Deol, Principal Secretary (Sports), Government of Maharashtra; and R. Vineel Krishna, Joint Secretary (Khelo India), Department of Sports, Government of India.

The deliberations covered a broad reform agenda aimed at creating an athlete-centric, professionally managed and future-ready sports ecosystem in Maharashtra.

Discussions focused on institutional reforms in sports governance, strengthening high-performance systems, capacity building of coaches through structured Continuous Professional Development programmes, enhanced sports science support, robust athlete development pathways, strengthening Mission Lakshyavedh, comprehensive assessment of Khelo India Centres, sustainable sports infrastructure development, professional management of sports facilities, digital athlete management systems, greater participation of the private sector, international collaborations for knowledge exchange, reforms in the State’s competition structure to ensure transparent and merit-based athlete progression, and the implementation roadmap for Project Mahadevaa.

The meeting also deliberated on measures to strengthen the Youth Affairs ecosystem through dedicated institutional mechanisms, enhanced youth engagement, leadership development and greater convergence among stakeholders.

Chairing the meeting, MoS Khadse emphasised that close collaboration between the Union and State Governments is essential for achieving the objectives of the Khelo Bharat Niti and realising the vision of Viksit Bharat under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

She noted that the proposed reforms would complement the vision of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to further strengthen Maharashtra’s position as one of India’s leading sporting states through institutional reforms, professional governance and sustained investment in athlete development.

The meeting concluded with a shared commitment to advancing these reforms through continued cooperation between the Government of India and the Government of Maharashtra, with the larger objective of building a globally competitive sports ecosystem and creating greater opportunities for athletes and youth across the State.

–IANS

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Despite a challenging BBL 14 campaign for the team, Overton was a standout performer. He claimed 11 wickets throughout the season, including a crucial 2-27 in a tense 11-run loss to the Hobart Hurricanes at Adelaide Oval.

His contributions were not limited to the ball; Overton also proved destructive with the bat, amassing 191 runs at an extraordinary average of 95.40, with a top score of 45 not out.

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“Renuka and Harman both have been really important members and they have played their part amazingly well.”

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“As a team, we do not have to think what is not there because we want to go out there and have the positive mindset that we have a really balanced squad. The girls who have come in as well are really, really good. We will not think about what is not there or happening. The only thing is that we have to go out there and play good cricket tomorrow,” said Smriti in the pre-series press conference.

India and Ireland will play in a three-match ODI series, starting from Friday at the Niranjan Shah Stadium in Rajkot. The next two matches in the series will also be held at the same venue. India are currently placed third in the ICC Women’s Championship points table and have already qualified for this year’s ODI World Cup due to the virtue of being hosts.

“We had a good series against West Indies – 2-1 in the T20I series, 3-0 in the one-day series. Definitely, the last series gave us a lot of confidence and different batters at different times got runs. Then, especially the bowling attack was on point against West Indies. So, hoping that we keep the form going. It’s great conditions to play a cricket match, so I’m really excited to start the series tomorrow,” added Smriti.

Asked about the chance to play bilaterals against Ireland for the first time since 2006, Smriti stated, “The ICC Championship system gives us a chance to play all the teams in the three-year cycle. We haven’t played a lot of cricket against Ireland. They have played some exciting cricket in the last one or two years.”

“So, sometimes playing against a new opposition is always very exciting and I am sure that we won’t look at them in any other way. For us, it’s about going out and playing our best 100%. But really excited that we are playing against Ireland, who are on their first tour to India.”

With Pratika Rawal set to continue opening the batting, Smriti expressed confidence in her regular opening partner Shafali Verma, who has been scoring runs in domestic cricket after being left out due to her prolonged struggle in ODIs, to be back in the national set-up soon. “Shafali, in the last two or three one-day series, she’s not been part of the squad. Pratika, in the last series, has done really well in her absence. But definitely, Shefali scored a lot of runs in domestic, so she’s definitely in the scheme of things. I’m really happy that she went back and got those runs.”

Smriti signed off by saying the challenge of playing at different venues in India in recent times has been an exciting factor. “In the last 4 or 5 series in India, we’ve played on different conditions which is great for women’s cricket. We’re going to different venues, and that is a challenge. I will talk about those challenges rather than the other challenges as a player. So, really exciting but as big a challenge it is, it’s an exciting one.”

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