Chandigarh, November 15
The Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh (SAAP) has taken a bold initiative to give opportunity to the street children in sports activities. In this programme, NGOs were involved to help children play and display their talent. This was disclosed by Ms Sumita Dawra, Managing Director of the SAAP on a visit to the city. In an interaction with this reporter at the Shivalik Public School, Mohali where she had come as a observer for the Sub-Junior National Gymnastics meet, said there is so much to do for sport development in AP. She detailed that in the sports talent search for street children, they were given sports uniforms and the opportunity to take part in about nine disciplines in a two day festival. She said the shortlisted talented children will be admitted to various state run academies. She said in future they plan to involve more organisations and philanthropic institutions to have this talent search. Ms Dawra suggested that similar experiment could be reported by other states also so that our country develops abundant talent in each sport.

Another initiative planned in AP is to have week long sports festival for the minor children working in the shops and establishments in the old city of Hyderabad. Here they would coordinate with the Education Department and advantages will be two-fold, one to discover talent and second to attract them to schools where funds of Sarv Shiksha Abhiyan would also be utilised.

Ms Dawra said they organised the excursion trips for school children where eminent sports personalities had interaction so as to encourage them to take to sports. She said by another plan, SAAP will provide scientific training to 12000 Physical Education teachers and nearly 3000 Physical Directors in the state over the next three years. The disciplines chosen are athletics, kho-kho, kabaddi, volleyball, football, hockey and archery.

Ms Dawra, a daughter of former IAS Punjab cadre officer Mr IS Dawra joined this post only last June, said present Chief Minister, AP Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy who also holds the portfolio of Sports has given SAAP free hand in disbursing of money. The CM wants the money spent on sports to be used on scientific basis. She said many of their international class players like Gopichand, Sania Mirza, Gagan Narang, JJ Shobha, Karnam Malleshwari, Haritha to the extent of lakhs of rupees were benefited from SAAP.

On the SAAP fund position, Ms Dawra said ‘We have 18 crore in the plan budget for 2004-2005 and nearly eight crores in non-Plan budget for the 2004-2005 in its kitty in the Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh’.

Ms Dawra said many international and national level tournaments were also held in AP this year where SAAP also contributed major share of money. These were, Asian Handball meet, Asian satellite badminton meet, Asian Junior women Hockey meet, WTA Tennis meet, Indo- Pak Hockey test series, International level snooker meet, and Federation cup in carrom and host of national meets.

She praised the sports infrastructure in the city and said it could have more academies in different disciplines. Ms Dawra who was also went to Athens Olympics will be meeting tomorrow the Director General of Sports Authority of India at Delhi to discuss the holding a national-level fitness awareness camp in Hyderabad in January or February 2005.

Panchkula, November 15
More than seven months after Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) floated a housing scheme in the quaint Shivalik foothills in Mansa Devi Complex (MDC), the 34,000 applicants are still waiting for the draw of lots for these plots.

As per the rules, HUDA is supposed to hold the draw of lots within six months from the date the scheme is floated, or pay the interest to the applicants. Senior officials in HUDA say that though no date has yet been decided for holding the draw of plots, they are prepared to refund the money, along with the interest, in case the decision on “save the Sukhna lake” petition is not taken up by the Punjab and Haryana High Court in December.

Over 34,000 applicants have invested Rs 465.103 crore with Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) for the allotment of residential plots in Sector 2 and 6 of Mansa Devi Complex. The money, deposited as a fixed deposit in a bank, is getting HUDA a collective monthly interest of around Rs 2. 60 crore (at seven per cent rate of interest, Rs 31.90 crore is the collective annual interest), or a daily interest of around Rs 9 lakh. So far, HUDA has netted a profit (as interest ) of over Rs 18 crore.

The scheme for the two sectors in Mansa Devi Complex (MDC) was floated by HUDA on April 5, 2004. As many as 165 residential plots in Sector 2 MDC, and 372 plots in Sector 6 MDC were offered under this housing scheme.

As many as 5,943 applications had been received by HUDA for the plots (of size two kanal, one kanal and 14 marla) in Sector 2 MDC, and 27,850 applications had been received for plots (of size 1 kanal, 14 marla and 10 marla) in Sector 6 MDC.

It may be noted that because of “save the Sukhna lake” petition filed by a Naya Gaon resident, in the Punjab and Haryana High Court, HUDA has not been able to hold the draw of plots here.

Officials in HUDA confirm that the stay order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court does not include stay on holding the draw of lots for plots in Sector 2 and 6 of Mansa Devi Complex. They have now sought clarification from the office of Advocate-General, Haryana.

HUDA has already sent receipts to the applicants, confirming the amount received for participation in the draw of lots. With the high court decision on the plots still a distant reality, HUDA was considering offering alternate residential plots in Sector 23, 27 and 28. Though as many as 800 plots are available in Sectors 27 and 28, but the number of plots of the size offered in MDC (of size 2 kanal, 1 kanal, 14 marla and 10 marla), are less. These sectors have maximum plots of size eight marla and six marla.

It was then decided to offer the premium plots on the banks of river Ghaggar, the proposed Golf View Villa, in Sector 23 to the applicants for MDC plots. As many as 90 plots of two kanal and one kanal size are being developed here. However, because of low price of land in these three sectors, as compared to MDC, HUDA authorities are finding it difficult to offer alternate plots.