India's biggest rural sports festival, District-level Kabaddi matches kicked off in Tirupur today. M.P.Saminathan, Minister for Tamil Development, Information and Publicity congratulated the players for their participation.
Kabaddi Matches Kick Off In Tirupur As Part Of Isha Gramotsavam Tamil Nadu Minister M.P.Saminathan along with other dignitaries inaugurate the matches
As part of Isha Gramotsavam, India's biggest rural sports festival, District-level Kabaddi matches kicked off in Tirupur today. M.P.Saminathan, Minister for Tamil Development, Information & Publicity congratulated the players for their participation and inaugurated the matches. Tirupur Mayor Dineshkumar and District Police Commissioner S. Prabakaran also joined in the event today as special guests.
In the first phase, district-level competitions are conducted in 38 districts. Accordingly, Tirupur district competitions are being held today and tomorrow at Gayathri Mahal on Kangayam Road.
The matches witnessed nail-biting performances in both the men's and women's categories. The standout performers from these matches will progress to compete at the zonal level. Subsequently, teams winning at the zonal level will advance to the state-level championship finals set to take place in front of the iconic Adiyogi at Isha Yoga Center, Coimbatore on September 23rd.
Isha Gramotsavam is currently conducting district-level matches in all 38 districts of Tamil Nadu. The matches are being conducted in collaboration with Tamil Nadu Amateur Kabaddi Association. The top four men's teams in the finals will be rewarded with prize money of Rs. 5 lakh, Rs. 3 lakh, Rs. 1 lakh, and Rs. 50,000 respectively. Similarly, the top four teams in the women's category will receive Rs. 2 lakh, Rs. 1 lakh, Rs. 50,000, and Rs. 25,000 as prize money.
Conducted since 2004, Isha Gramotsavam is not a tournament for professional players but is a platform that encourages everyone to play. From encouraging everyone to take up some form of a game to bringing back the fun of rural games and reviving dying traditional art forms, the whole initiative is carefully crafted so that the entire village comes together as a celebration and brings back the zest of rural life.
Isha Outreach, which is organising the Gramotsavam has been recognized as National Sports Promotion Organization (NSPO) by the Ministry of Sports & Youth Affairs. In the year 2018, Isha Outreach received the "Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar award from the President of India for Sports Development. Sports celebrities like Sachin Tendulkar, Olympic medallist Rajavardhan Singh Rathore and Kamam Malleshwari have earlier participated as special guests in the finals of the sports festival. Mithali Raj, PV Sindhu, Virender Sehwag, and Shikhar Dhawan have voiced support for Isha Gramotsavam.