Vanishing Sporting Spaces

The importance of sports in one's life, especially for children and young adults cannot be overstated. For our young generation these spaces are what lungs are to a human body. But unfortunately such spaces are fast vanishing from our landscape. In our earlier scheme of living there used to be ample empty spaces that could function as sporting ground for the youth of the area. But now the case is not the same. With the increase in population and a haphazard growth of our housing sector all such spaces have disappeared.

The result is that our young adults have no spaces to relax, destress and amplify their sporting talent. In the uptown Srinagar the case is even worse. Since all the housing colonies came up at a time when no regulations could be followed, it resulted in an urban sprawl that is not worth living. The roads to the interiors are narrow, and there are absolutely no spaces for collective use. The government also didn't create new housing colonies that could take care of the growing population.

With the result this entire area is badly wanting in terms of open spaces. The government now in place can take it up as a long term project and look for alternatives in this direction. The government can create sports ground in the vicinity of Srinagar where land is still available. The government can also develop the dry patches of the flood channel into sports grounds, after duly taking the expert opinion into consideration.

There are already many spots in the flood channel where the locals have found a space to sport. Similarly, the government can capitalise on the spaces that are available with different schools, whether government run or privately managed. If the government allows the schools to run sports clubs after the schooling hours, it can open up a huge space for our youth.

The only thing is that the management of the club should be left with those who run the schools, as that would ensure discipline. If the officials open up their minds, and do not look through the narrow and faulty prism of regulations, schools can contribute a lot in terms of sports. It can also open up a source of revenue for the schools, as they need it to provide good sporting facilities.