Punjab's poor performance in Khelo India Youth Games reflects government negligence: Teachers' front
Chandigarh: The
Democratic Teachers' Front
(DTF) has strongly criticised the Punjab govt for the state's disappointing performance in the Khelo India Youth Games 2025, calling it a direct consequence of the govt's failure to promote grassroots sports.
The games, held in Bihar from May 4 to 15 under the Sports Authority of India, saw Punjab fall from 8th position last year to 13th this year. Out of more than 250 participating students from the state, Punjab managed to win only 47 medals — 8 gold, 14 silver, and 25 bronze — raising serious concerns about the state of sports development in Punjab.
In comparison, Maharashtra topped the medal tally with 158 medals (58 gold, 47 silver, and 53 bronze), followed by Haryana with 117 and Rajasthan with 60.
Punjab's gold medals came from only a handful of sports, with two each in Judo, Gatka, and Shooting, and one each in Gymnastics and Weightlifting. No gold medals were won in any other discipline, pointing to the lack of depth in the state's sports performance.
DTF leaders, including state president Vikramdev Singh, general secretary Mahinder Kaurianwali, and finance secretary Ashwani Awasthi, held that only 15% of the Rs 13 crore allocated for sports was spent on school-level initiatives.
They criticised the govt for spending hundreds of crores on publicity campaigns while neglecting foundational infrastructure in schools.
The DTF compared Punjab's situation with Delhi, where approximately Rs 20,000 per child is spent under the sports quota, while in Punjab, the figure stands at a meagre Rs 1,200. The body called for a separate and dedicated budget for school sports, the recruitment of physical education teachers at the primary level, and making sports a compulsory subject up to Class XII.
They also emphasised that the position of sports director should be held by someone with an athletic background, preferably an Olympian, who can take independent decisions to strengthen sports development in the state.
Additionally, DTF leaders Rajiv Barnala, Gurpiyar Kotli, Beant Phullewal, Jagpal Bhangi, Harjinder Wadala Bangar, and Raghveer Bhawanigarh demanded that a professionally trained officer with a sports background be appointed to oversee all sports-related responsibilities in the Punjab school education department. They stressed the urgent need to replace empty slogans with real action and urged the govt to formulate a comprehensive sports policy in consultation with experts to build a lasting sports culture in the state.
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