Vizag, Nellore In Race 4 India's 6Th National Institute Of Sports(Nis)

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Venkaiah keen to set up NIS at Nellore, Vizag in race too

 

VISAKHAPATNAM: Vizag is up against union minister M Venkaiah Naidu in trying to swing the prestigious National Institute of Sports (NIS) centre its way as the powerful BJP leader wants it to be located in his native Nellore district. 

After indications from the centre that a new NIS would come up in Andhra Pradesh, the TDP government is scouting for land for the same. It would be the third in South India and the sixth in the country. The five NIS centres in the country at present are in Patiala (Punjab), Kolkata (West Bengal), Gandhi Nagar (Gujarat), Bangalore (Karnataka) and Trivandrum (Kerala). 

Armed with an integrated sports complex that include indoor stadiums, fields with an athletic track, experts in sports medicine and other facilities, NIS are the premier institutions in the country that train sportspersons for coaching in various disciplines. 

 

According to sources, the state government has asked various districts to identify suitable land of around 150 to 200 acres. Vizag district administration has already examined land at Sabbavaram area and a other few places, a senior revenue official told TOI. "To set up a centre like NIS, we need a minimum investment of Rs 100 crore for the structures and equipment apart from the land," he said. 

However, sources said Union urban development minister M Venkaiah Naidu is also eager to set up the premier sports institute in his native district of Nellore. He has been discussing the proposal with experts in the capital for setting up the institute at Nellore town or Gudur in his native district, the sources added. 

"The proposal to set up an NIS centre is good for sports. But the state government should also provide facilities for athletes in the existing stadiums and sports centres. We need to appoint more coaches to train the children as at present, there are not more than two to three coaches in each district," Indian Volley Ball Association vice-president S Kodandaramayya told TOI. 

Three years ago, when TRK Rao was the VC and MD of the Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh in the undivided state, an NIS centre was proposed to be set up at Gachibowli sports complex. The then Union minister for sports and defence, Jitendra Singh, too had given an in-principle approval for the centre. However, after bifurcation, the central government is in favour of setting up the NIS in Andhra Pradesh, sources in the district administration said. But whether it will end up in Vizag or Nellore remains to be seen.

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