Four new indigenous sports were included in the fourth edition of Khelo India. Haryana hosted this time and the games were organized in Panchkula, Shahbad, Ambala, Chandigarh and Delhi. Haryana topped the medal tally for the second time by winning a total of 137 medals.
Khelo India Youth Games It was started four years back, since then it is getting rich every year. In this, not only the players from all over the country are getting an opportunity to showcase their talent, but traditional sports are also getting a platform. This time Haryana hosted the fourth edition of Khelo India Youth Games. Four new indigenous sports were included for the first time in this sports competition, which lasted from June 4-13, which include Gatka, Thang-Ta, Kalaripayattu and Malkhamb. He was presented in the Khelo India held in Guwahati. This time they were included after the approval of the Center.
The Khelo India Youth Games was held for the first time on January 31, 2018 at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in New Delhi. These were held for the second time on January 9-20, 2019 in Pune (Maharashtra) and for the third time in Guwahati on January 18-30, 2020. The objective of Khelo India program is to provide basic facilities and training to the youth to take them to the top level by motivating them for sports. At the same time, promoting traditional sports, working towards their promotion. Under this, this time four traditional sports were included. The last time these games were presented in Guwahati, which was approved by the central government this time.
Malla Akharas turned out to be Gatka
The sixth Guru of the Sikhs, Shri Hargobind Sahib, started the Mall Akharas for self-defense. From there, ‘Gatka’ became the pride of Khelo India this time. 256 players from 16 states participated in it. This includes Punjab, Chandigarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Haryana, Rajasthan, New Delhi, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal, Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. The World Gatka Federation is now trying to take this game to the international level.
Sukhchain Singh, the vice-president of the Federation, said that a lot of efforts were made to bring this method developed about 550 years ago. Earlier, Gatka Games were organized in the villages on a small scale. Then 9 competitions were organized at Block, District and National level. The rules of the game were fixed in these competitions and nine rules books were published. Gatka is played with a stick, which is called a sonti. There are two participants in a singles event. Similarly, there is also a team event in single stick, in which there are three participants in a team. The third event is played with a free stick, which also has a shield with a rod. A player can participate in both the events.
Haryana on top by winning 52 gold
In Khelo India Youth Games-2021, Haryana stood first by winning 52 gold, 39 silver and 46 bronze medals. Haryana won a total of 137 medals in the event. Maharashtra came second with a total of 125 medals, including 45 gold, 40 silver and 40 bronze, and Karnataka third with a total of 67 medals, including 22 gold, 17 silver and 28 bronze. Haryana won the maximum 38 medals in wrestling. These include 16 gold, 10 silver and 12 bronze medals. Apart from 10 gold, 3 silver and 2 bronze medals in boxing, 3 gold, 6 silver and 5 bronze in athletics, 3 gold, 4 silver and 4 bronze in judo, Haryana has 2 gold and 6 bronze in cycling, 4 gold in swimming, 2 Silver & 2 Bronze, 3 Gold, 2 Silver & 2 Bronze in Shooting, 4 Gold, 2 Silver & 1 Bronze in Weightlifting, 1 Gold & 5 Bronze in Yogasan, 1 Silver & 3 Bronze in Thang-Ta, 1 Gold in Gatka And 3 silver medals came in the bag of Haryana. Similarly, 1 Gold and 1 Silver in Handball, 1 Gold in Hockey, 1 Gold and 1 Silver in Archery, 1 Gold and 1 Bronze in Badminton, 1 Bronze in Football, 1 Bronze in Gymnastics, 1 Gold and 1 Silver in Kabaddi, Haryana players won 1 silver medal in table tennis, 1 bronze in tennis and 2 silver medals in volleyball. Haryana Government gave one lakh rupees to the gold medal winners, 60 thousand rupees to the silver medal winners and 40 thousand rupees to the bronze medal winners. Apart from this, all the players participating in Khelo India were given Rs 5,000.
King-Maharaja’s Game Thang-Ta
The martial art ‘Thang-Ta’, which was introduced by the Raja-Maharajas in Manipur about 400 years ago, is now a part of Khelo India. Thang means sword and ta means spear. The British had banned the art of playing with swords and spears. But the people of Manipur with their efforts not only revived this ancient art, but also took it to Khelo India. H. Prem Kumar Singh of the Thang-Ta Federation of India, who gave this art the form of a sport, said that he used to think that when martial arts can make its place as a sport by coming from abroad, then why not Thang-Ta ? But the first challenge in presenting it as a game was its rules. The second challenge was, what to replace the sword and spear?
Ultimately H. Prem Kumar used stick (sword-shaped) and shield instead of sword and organized more and more competitions to get it national and international recognition and traveling around the country and abroad with his team to promote the game and the rules related to it. did. Under this effort, a competition for North-East states was organized in Imphal in 1990. This was followed by the National Championship in 1993. Then every year it was organized at different places. The World Championship was organized for the first time in 2011, in which 6 countries participated. This time 140 players from 22 teams participated in Thang-Ta.
desi martial art kalaripayattu
Kalaripayattu was a traditional game of Kerala in ancient times. From this the martial art was born. That is why it is also called the father of martial arts. It is one of the oldest martial arts in the world. Kalaripayattu is a combination of two words Kalari and Payattu. In this, kalari means school or gymnasium and payattu means war or exercise. It is not just limited to exercise and physical fitness, but is a lifestyle. Through this warriors also learn to cure. Kalaripayattu is practiced in Kalari, which can also be colloquially known as Akhada. Activities such as Chattam (jumping), Ottam (running) and Marichil (acrobatics) are an integral part of this martial art. In this, the use of weapons like sword, dagger, spear, mugdar and bow and arrow is taught. About 200 players from 13 states participated in this game, in which Haryana had 5 players.
The goal of taking Malkhamb to the Olympics
Malkhamb or Mallakhamb is also derived from the Akhara. The word Malla used in this means warrior or wrestler and Khambha means pillar. It is a traditional game of India. Madhya Pradesh declared it a state sport on 9 April 2013. Yoga or gymnastics, performed on a vertical wooden pole, first caught the attention of the world at the Olympics held in 1936. After that it spread all over the world. Malkhamb World Champion was organized for the first time in 2019, in which 150 players from more than 15 countries reached Mumbai to participate. Dharamvir Singh, general secretary of Malkhamb Federation of India, said that the game is being played in 35 countries. They say that Malkhamb Training Center should be opened in every district of Haryana. Also, it should be included in the list of sports of Haryana so that the famous players in this sport also get the same facilities as other sports. Apart from this, Malkhamb should also be included in the school games of the state.