KARACHI, March 3: Better late than never. March 1 was an historic day for the uplift of sports in the province when the Sindh Cabinet made it mandatory for districts, taluka and tehsil to spend at least two percent of their annual budget allocations on promotion of sports.

There’s enormous talent in rural Sindh which unfortunately lacked proper sports gear, infra structure and grooming to come at par with urban athletes. The decision approved with one stroke of a pen after 60-years of country’s coming into being is billed to throw new faces in the days to come.

Another decision that is bound to flourish healthy activities is that charter/NOC to private educational institutions including schools, colleges and universities will be linked with provision of reasonable space for sports for the students.

It is pertinent to mention that the Sindh cabinet had already asked Sindh Board of Revenue, CDGK and TMAs to ensure provision of reasonable piece of land for sports while allotting land to the cooperative societies, schemes at the district and taluka level.

It was decided that encroachments on the land already earmarked for sports and public parks will be removed forthwith and protected in future.

The summary, approved by the Sindh cabinet, was put forward by Qamar Mansoor, Minister for Sports and Youth Affairs department in the light of presentation made before president, General Pervaiz Musharraf, on sports strategy by Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth Affairs on Oct 30, 2004.—A.Z.