Special sports training for tribal students in Tamil Nadu

Chennai: For tribal students, the Tamil Nadu tribal department will offer specialised sports training programmes in collaboration with the district administrations.

The Kallakurichi district administration has started a ten-day special sports training programme for students at the Kalryan Hills' Ekalavya Tribal Welfare School as part of this endeavour.

The ten-day programme is intended at bringing confidence in children from tribal hamlets who are generally reluctant to participate in the sports and games.

According to Kallakurichi district administration, about 150 children will be provided free training in volleyball, kabbadi, long jump, high jump, short put, relay and in rope gymnastics. The children will also be trained in traditional tribal sport like mallakhamb.

Kallakurichi district collector, P.N. Sridhar while speaking to IANS said, "The students of Ekalavya tribal school are provided this sports training as a step to empower and improve their skills. These students of the tribal school from Kalryan hills will be equipped with skills in various games so that they can participate in state, national and international tournaments."

The coaches will be provided accommodation at the school premises as it would be difficult for them to reach the Kalryan hills from Kallakurichi. The students, who are undergoing sports training, will also be provided with hostel accommodation in the school itself as leaving for homes in the remote areas after night will be risky due to wild animals in the area.

The state-tribal department is also facing these problems as almost all the tribal schools are situated either in forest areas or adjacent to forest lands. The tribal department will be conducting sports training programmes in all the tribal schools of Tamil Nadu after the successful completion of the sports training programme being carried out at the Ekalavya Tribal School, Kalryan hills in Kallakurichi.

Sources in the state tribal department told IANS that the budget for the sports development programme among tribal students will be released from the funds allocated for health and nutrition for tribal students.