PANAJI: How is the field of sports being looked at in Goa? Does it hold a promise to be a career choice and what needs to be done to ensure that the youngsters take up the opportunities? The answers for these questions and more, were the topics discussed at the recent Roundtable Conference on Sports scenarios in Goa – organised by the Sports Department of V. M. Salgaocar College of Law, in collaboration with the VMSCL Centre for Political Leadership.
Padma Shri Brahmanand Shankhwalkar chaired the initiative, and in attendance were representatives from various educational institutions from across the state – who discussed opportunities as well as issues plaguing sports in Goa.
Dr Shabir Ali, Principal of V. M. Salgaocar College of Law, welcomed all the speakers and announced an upcoming course on ‘Sports Law’ for the college students.
Keynote Speaker, Dr Sam Braganza highlighted the need for sports to be made compulsory at school and college level for all students. Further, he emphasised the importance of participation for the youth of Goa.
Dr Clifton Fernandes spoke about various career opportunities for sportspersons in Goa and the lack of awareness among the general public. “We need a proper roadmap for sports education in Goa,” Dr Fernandes said.
Some of the other vital suggestions which came from other speakers were about the need for a Sports University, development of a structured curriculum at the school level, nurturing sports at the grassroots level, scouting of talent at all levels, focussing on infrastructure and upgradation of equipment, financial support to budding sportspersons etc.
The Roundtable was moderated by Dr Elroy Pinto and Dr Sahadev Mandrekar. Dnyaneshwar P. Pednekar, Melinda Ria Pereira, Sidhesh Kesarkar, Dr Sushant Haldankar, Siddhesh Tari, Ramrai Naik, Lavu Govekar, Pandurang Naik, Michael Dias, Francis Lobo, Bhalchandra Jadar, Ajinkya Kudtarkar, Devashish Bagchi were the other speakers on the Roundtable.
All the speakers came to a consensus to draft an action plan to revive sports in Goa. The same report will be submitted to all the sports stakeholders in Goa. The event concluded with felicitation of Padma Shri Brahmanand Shankhwalkar, states a press release.
