Parliament green signals Sports Bill
The National Anti-Doping (Amendment) Bill, which reinforces NADA's autonomy as required by the World Anti-Doping Agency, was also passed by the Parliament. The two bills now await presidential assent to be notified as acts.
Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Mansukh Mandaviya moved the bills for consideration and passage in the Upper House at 3 pm.
'In 20 countries, there is sports law. I request the Rajya Sabha to make India the 21st country with a sports law,' Mandaviya said in his address, which was followed by a discussion that lasted over two hours.
During the discussion, BJD MP Subhashish Khuntia raised concerns about the centralisation of sports governance due to the bill. He also felt that the bill did not have clarity on the district and block-level development of athletes.
'The bill should empower, not control,' he said.
Mandaviya responded by saying that the government is only seeking to be a facilitator.
'In this bill, we are bringing transparency, not control, not interference. Government doesn't want to control. We are being the supporters and providers of a structure,' he asserted.
Former All India Football Federation President and NCP leader Praful Patel was among the prominent voices who lauded the bill.
'It was a long-standing legislation that was required. We have had a sports code — it's been a loose code and never stood any legal scrutiny. What is happening today is the need of the hour,' Patel said.'We are hoping to win the 2036 bid of Olympics. That itself would be a redefining moment for Indian sports. This bill is absolutely in the right direction. We need this to achieve glory that is beyond cricket. It is imperative that this bill be passed with fullest support.'
The most striking aspect of the bill is that the NSB is to create a stringent system of accountability. The NSB will have the mandate to de-recognise a national body that fails to hold elections for its Executive Committee or has committed 'gross irregularities in the election procedures.'
Failure to publish annual audited accounts or 'misused, misapplied or misappropriated public funds' would also be liable for action by the NSB, but it would be required to consult the concerned global body before making its move.
Another feature is the proposal for a National Sports Tribunal, which will have the powers of a civil court and decide disputes ranging from selection to election involving federations and athletes. Once instituted, the Tribunal's decisions can only be challenged in the Supreme Court.
The bill makes some concessions on the issue of age cap for administrators by allowing those in the bracket of 70 to 75 to contest elections if the concerned international bodies' statutes and by-laws allow for it. It is a departure from the national sports code that capped the age limit at 70.
All recognised national sports bodies would also come under the ambit of the Right to Information (RTI) Act, something that the BCCI has vehemently opposed since it is not dependent on government funding. However, the cricket board has got some leeway on that front with the government amending the bill to ensure that RTI would be applicable only on bodies that rely on government funding or support.
Another significant amendment made to the draft is the mandatory term of two tenures in the EC to be eligible for fighting NSF elections.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
4 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Ashwin expounds on Shubman Gill vs Yashasvi Jaiswal Asia Cup debate: 'Rohit Sharma not in team, so he automatically...'
Veteran all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin discussed a few talking points regarding India's squad for the upcoming Asia Cup. The selectors have not announced the squad yet, as they must be in a dilemma over some big choices. It is going to be a tough task for the defending champions to get their combination right, as it is going to be the first tournament after the transition period started after Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma's retirements. Chief selector Ajit Agarkar had to make a call with coach Gautam Gambhir and skipper Suryakumar Yadav on whether to bring back Test captain Shubman Gill back in the T20I side. Meanwhile, Yashasvi Jaiswal is another player who will be in contention for a place in the Asia Cup squad. India Shubman Gill, left, and Yashasvi Jaiswal might fight for a place for opener in the Asia Cup squad.(PTI) Ashwin weighed in on the Gill vs Jaiswal debate for the Asia Cup, pointing out that the left-hander was chosen ahead of the current Test captain as a backup in the 2024 T20 World Cup, which has now strengthened his case for selection. 'There are a few talking points regarding the Asia Cup. The first question that comes to everyone's mind is whether Shubman Gill fits into the T20 plans because in the last World Cup, Yashasvi Jaiswal was the backup opener," Ashwin said while speaking on his YouTube channel. 'So Jaiswal automatically gets a kick-in. Rohit Sharma is not going to be a part of that team, so Jaiswal automatically gets a look-in. Now, who is going to be that other opener?" Ashwin added. 'Sanju Samson has had a fabulous run too…' The former Indian cricketer asserted that Shubman recently had an incredible Test series to make a claim to get picked. He also pointed out that Sanju Samson has performed exceedingly well as an opener in the shortest format for India so far. 'Shubman Gill had an outstanding series. Can he return to the squad? Sanju Samson has had a fabulous run as a T20 opener for India. So I think it is a tricky state for the selectors," he said. Meanwhile, he also emphasised that Shreyas Iyer has built a strong case for a return, adding another layer of complexity to the selection decisions. Can Shreyas Iyer make a comeback? There is a lot of decision-making that the selectors have to make," Ashwin said.
Indian Express
5 minutes ago
- Indian Express
North Block is leaving the building, with files, stationery and nostalgia
In its 94-year existence, North Block has seen a lot. It was the seat of power of the colonial British government, the site of spontaneous celebrations when India became Independent in 1947, and, ever since, has been a witness to successive governments shaping policy for the nation. These days, however, the corridors of the building are nearly deserted, with sections roped off, and locks hanging on doors that till recently hid a flurry of activity. The building is in the process of being emptied as part of the government's plan to redevelop the Central Vista area – the stretch from India Gate to Rashtrapati Bhawan. North Block now is to be repurposed as a museum, with key ministries that have operated out of it since 1931 when its construction finished – including Union Ministries of Home Affairs and Finance, and the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) – to be moved to a set of 'Kartavya Bhawan' buildings down the road. However, the work of shifting a government can't be hurried up. And in this case is being coordinated by a ministry – Housing and Urban Affairs, which is also spearheading the Central Vista redevelopment. Other ministries have appointed a nodal officer each for the exercise, which began around a month ago. Under their watch, files are being sorted into marked boxes, computers are being packed, and office supplies are going into cardboard containers. Artwork, including many, many photographs of Mahatma Gandhi, is being bubble-wrapped. The packing is being done by office staff, aided by a team of workers hired for the job. Once packed, the boxes are carried by workers down the stairs to a side entrance, and loaded onto tempos and government cars. These then cover the short distance to the new address. An official working in North Block says the move has been fairly smooth so far, particularly when it comes to files, given that nearly all, save the sensitive ones, are now on the government's E-Office portal. Officials in the know say the DoPT has almost entirely moved out. Jitendra Singh, the Minister of State for Prime Ministers' Office, Science and Technology and Personnel, is expected to shift soon, sources said. The Home Ministry has been allotted Kartavya Bhawan 3, and Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan and the Intelligence Bureau were some of the first ones to shift. According to sources, the shifting of some offices to KB3, as the building is referred to, began before its formal inauguration by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 6. The Finance Ministry, however, is yet to begin shifting. An officer in the middle of shifting says: 'I'm soaking in the last few days at this building. Many of my former colleagues who have worked here have been dropping by to see the offices one last time.' Like the South Block that stands across it, North Block, designed by British architect Herbert Baker in red sandstone, incorporating Indian features like jaali, chajja and chhattri, is as much a regal structure as a functional one, with plenty of light and ventilation. The new buildings, in comparison, look like any modern corporate office, with glass cabins for officers, open plan seating for most employees and access-control systems. Offices in the South Block, which houses the Prime Minister's Office and the Ministries of Defence and External Affairs, have not started moving out yet. Once both the buildings are emptied, they are to be restored and refurbished, before reopening as Yuge Yugeen National Museum. The government claims it will be the largest museum in the world. The 'charm' of North Block is what those who have worked here keep coming back to in conversations. G K Pillai, who spent seven years in North Block, first as Joint Secretary from 1996 to 2001 and then as Union Home Secretary from 2009 to 2011, recalls the sense of history that permeates the rooms. 'Stalwarts, including Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, worked here. Old-timers would tell us about important meetings that took place in the past,' Pillai, who is now retired, says. The former IAS officer adds that he personally believes that not all the ministries from North Block and South Block should have been shifted to the new quarters. 'Some of them could have stayed. The next generation of officers will lose that sense of history,' says Pillai. Durga Shanker Mishra, a 1984-batch IAS officer who retired as Uttar Pradesh Chief Secretary last year, recalls his time in a ground-floor North Block office as Director (Personnel) in the Home Ministry in 2002-2004. 'I have good memories of that office. Though I was a director in Home, I had been given a room on the Finance Ministry's side. It was a well-sized room.' However, Mishra says: 'As is the case with old buildings, there were challenges. It needed more maintenance over the years.' As Secretary, Housing and Urban Affairs, Mishra was, in fact, part of the deliberations when the Central Vista project was planned and started. He says the new Central Secretariat buildings will change the way the government works, in terms of efficiency and coordination. In fact, while senior officers – who along with ministers had large airy offices – are understandably nostalgic about the high-ceilinged large rooms that they are leaving behind, not all in the North Block will regret the change. A majority of its employees worked in cramped spaces, with partitions created within dingy rooms to accommodate more officials over the years. Mezzanine levels were also added to create space, with the temporary additions doubling the number of rooms in both North and South Blocks over the years. A section official says: 'We are looking forward to the new building. I've heard that the canteen is very nice.' But true to form, the open-plan layout of the new Secretariat also has its share of detractors. On August 5, the Central Secretariat Service Forum, which represents around 13,000 employees, wrote a letter to the Prime Minister's Office expressing concerns about 'the lack of privacy and confidentiality' in the new arrangement.
Indian Express
5 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Aakash Chopra on KL Rahul's chances of getting selected for Asia Cup 2025 squad: ‘If something is stopping him, it's his own mindset'
KL Rahul in T20 cricket is an enigma despite churning out runs season after season in the IPL. The question of strike rate has always hung around him. Do modern T20 has a place for an anchor like him or not is a different debate; however, Rahul has all the shots to play the modern way, which can integrate him into any side, and with his versatility of batting at any number, he is an asset. However, will he be picked for the upcoming Asia Cup 2025, which is to be played in the shorter format? Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra answered on his YouTube channel to a query. 'Very, very interesting one. Your question is absolutely valid because he is a good player. If you see his IPL numbers, they are outstanding. In the recent past, no player has been a 600-run bank like him. However, a reputation has developed that he plays very slow at times,' he responded 'If something is stopping him, it's his own mindset. Sometimes his legs are shackled, and when the mindset is right, he flies with wings. I feel he has the game. I remember a shot, it was the Indore ground, and he hit Jasprit Bumrah for a six over cover, and I was like wow. However, then you also get knocks when you feel that he should hit, but he thinks differently,' he observed. 'He cannot play as an opener because the opening story has ended, unfortunately, for the time being. Sanju Samson is there with Abhishek Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal is behind them, and I am putting Shubman Gill's name also at the fourth spot. Four people are standing in the line,' he said 'Ishan Kishan is saying that he is also there. Everyone wants to open. So there is no place for an opener. You will have to play in the middle order, and there, Jitesh Sharma is one, who has done very well, played an excellent IPL, and made his team win. Sanju Samson is opening at the moment. So a keeper is not required. Dhruv Jurel is also standing behind,' Chopra observed.
