Coaching camp for sub-junior handball begins in HP

Bilaspur, JunE 27 (UNI) A coaching camp for the sub-junior handball team that will represent India in the Commonwealth meet at Zambia from August 20 to 30 began here today.

Himachal Pradesh Forest Minister Ram Lal Thakur, who formally inaugurated the camp here, said it was a matter of pride that the handball team for the meet was being given coaching here.

Expressing confidence that the team would do well at the meet, he said this was only possible if the players put in their best effort after coaching by foreign coaches.

Thakur, who is also the Chief-de-mission for the tournament, said, 46 players from all over the country were taking part in the six-month long coaching camp and added that the final team would be selected on July 19.

Referring to the multi-purpose sports stadium at Luhnu where the coaching camp was being held, he said Rs 1.26 crore had been sanctioned for laying down a synthetic 400 metre track, besides another Rs 40 lakh for laying wooden flooring in the indoor gymnasium during this fiscal.

The minister said Rs 16 lakh would be spent on upgrading the national level cricket stadium in the complex.

Work was also on for laying an Astroturf in the hockey stadium, he said, adding that Rs 1.50 crore had been sanctioned for the construction of an artificial lake along side the Luhnu Multipurpose Stadium.

This he said would enable the organization of water sports much easier and added that this was perhaps the only stadium in the country where water, athletics and adventure sports could be organized simultaneously.

UNI XC AS DP PDS KP1630