Twitter
Advertisement

Cricket loses on LS ground

Even as the Lok Sabha on Thursday passed the Sports Broadcasting Signals Bill 2007, several members slammed the nation’s obsession with cricket.

Latest News
article-main
FacebookTwitterWhatsappLinkedin

NEW DELHI: Even as the Lok Sabha on Thursday passed the Sports Broadcasting Signals (Mandatory Sharing with Prasar Bharti) Bill 2007, several members slammed the nation’s obsession with cricket at the cost of other “desi” games.

Replying after a discussion on the bill, information and broadcasting minister Priya ranjan Dasmunshi assured the members that “disciplines other than cricket such as football, women’s hockey, kabaddi and kho-kho would be encouraged.”

Pointing towards Dasmunshi, BJP member Giridhari Lal Bhargav said “you are a fan of football and Sharad Pawar is a cricket fan. There was a game called gulli danda in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, it is very much like the cricket, please include gulli danda in the list of national games. Cricket is a costly game. There are other games also such as kabaddi, wrestling, kho kho, etc which do not require huge investment and if you invest in them they also will become popular.”

Regretting the partial treatment to sports, PMK member Ramadass said that the nation and the media are obsessed with cricket. “I don’t want to quote George Bernard Shaw and offend others (Shaw had referring to cricket said eleven fools playing and eleven thousand fools watching as those days cricket fans did not run into millions as of now).”

Echoing similar sentiments CPI (M) member KS Manoj regretted the general budget did not allocate funds for promotion of other sports. Other than Commonwealth games, the minister has not earmarked funds for sports infrastructure in rural areas, he said. Subrata Bose of Forward Bloc also wanted the government to promote “indigenous sports” which are suffering due to lack of funds.  Trying to assauge the feelings of the members Dasmunshi said the bill was “not cricket specific, but sports specific”.

He said sports such as wrestling, archery, kabaddi, shooting and kho-kho suffered because there were no sponsors. Revenue earned from broadcasting cricket and other games can be utilised to promote the indigenous games, he added.

Find your daily dose of news & explainers in your WhatsApp. Stay updated, Stay informed-  Follow DNA on WhatsApp.
Advertisement

Live tv

Advertisement
Advertisement