Govt to introduce ''sports lottery'' from Nov 14: Minister

Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 22 (UNI) Kerala Sports and Youth Affairs Minister M Vijayakumar today said the government had decided to introduce a ''sports lottery'' to mobilise funds for the development of sports in the state.

Talking to mediapersons here, he said the government was expecting to mobilise Rs 500 crore through the ''super-mega-bumper lottery,'' which would be formally launched on November 14.

Mr Vijayakumar said as financial crunch was the main obstacle to the development of sports in the state, the profit from the sale of the lottery would be used for developing basic infrastructure in the sector.

Stating that the lottery scheme would be executed jointly by the Finance, Lottery and Sports Departments, he said the ticket price and prize money would be announced later after detailed discussions.

The draw of the lottery would be held on January 15, he added.

The sale of lottery would be sold through sports Clubs, Youth Clubs, Grama Panchayats, Municipal Corporations and Corporations, he said adding that these institutions would get a reasonable amount as commission, which would help them to develop sports facilities like construction of stadium in their respective areas.

The Minister also said the government was examining the possibility of imposing a ''Special Sports Tax'' to generate more resources for the sector.

As part of decentralisation of sports, the government appealed to the Planning Board and Planning Commission to include sports in the 11th plan.

Mr Vijayakumar said the government would soon bring in a new Sports Policy in the state and as a prelude, a Sports Commission would be formed.

Steps would be taken to make available its report within three months.

He said the state would host the 2009 National Games and our request in principle was accepted by Union Minister Mani Sankar Iyer, he added.

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