Sudurpashchim's Sports Sector in Disarray: A Crisis of Infrastructure and Leadership

Dhangadhi. Sudurpashchim is known as a province with immense sporting potential and talented athletes. Every year, the province competes in 33 disciplines at the President Running Shield, boasting capable athletes in sports ranging from volleyball and kabaddi to athletics and karate.

However, the current state of sports here is in decline. While there are hundreds of associations and clubs on paper, there are no coaches on the field to guide the athletes. There are no proper playgrounds, and the necessary facilities for athletes are non-existent.

In Sudurpashchim, 139 sports associations are registered, and 67 sports clubs exist. If statistics were the only basis, Sudurpashchim would appear to be far ahead in sports. Yet, out of these nearly 200 organizations, only a handful are active.

Most associations exist only on paper. Some become active only during elections or when budgets are released. The condition of the clubs is similar. Instead of conducting regular training and producing athletes, there is a growing trend of keeping names on paper to secure government grants and engage in minor programs. These associations and clubs have failed to move from paper to the field.

For the 33 sports taught in the school-level President Running Shield, there are only 6 coaches under the Provincial Sports Council. Sudurpashchim's sports sector has been running this way for years. Of these 6, 4 are on contract and 2 are on a daily wage basis. Two of the six are volleyball coaches. Gyanendra Dadiwana Chhetri for cricket at the Dhangadhi stadium and Bam Bahadur Bogati for boxing are working on a daily wage basis.

Ramchandra Joshi is the only one holding down his discipline for kabaddi in Achham and athletics in Dhangadhi. How can the government's policy of having 33 competitive disciplines but only 6 instructors ensure the future of athletes? This is the question Nain Bista from Dhangadhi asks the government.

'Those who seek results in sports must also invest; there is no investment, and what little exists does not reach the actual sports. The new government must pay special attention to sports,' he said.

The Sudurpashchim Provincial Sports Council should be an autonomous body. However, it is currently a victim of neglect and discrimination by the provincial government. According to Member Secretary Lok Bahadur Khadka, the council is not even given a budget for infrastructure development. 'We have positions for engineers, but the government stops the budget claiming there are no technical staff,' said Khadka.

Instead of giving the budget for sports infrastructure to the council, the ministry sends it to its own Social Development Offices. The provincial government is very active in running sports from administrative offices, sidelining the body that has experts who understand sports. The council is forced to manage the province's sports with an annual budget of just 2 million.

The Provincial Sports Council does not even have its own office. The administration is barely functioning from a rented building. Currently, only accounting staff remain here. On the other hand, while staff under the center (National Sports Council) are assigned to the province, they have not been adjusted. They work only when they feel like it. The Sports Council has the authority to assign them work, but no instructions come from above. There are staff under the National Sports Council in the province, some permanent, some on contract, and some on daily wages.

There are some staff and coaches, including 17 in Kanchanpur, 2 each in Dadeldhura, Baitadi, Achham, and Darchula, and 1 each in Doti and Bajura. However, the Provincial Council is unaware of what they are doing and how many athletes they are training daily. This lack of coordination between the center and the province has prevented the proper utilization of available human resources.

While the lack of coaches is one problem, another major issue is physical infrastructure. There is not a single organized sports ground of international standard in Sudurpashchim. Even the few existing stadiums are dilapidated due to a lack of maintenance. Athletes are unable to showcase their potential as they lack places for regular practice.

'There are many grounds here, in every ward, but not one is organized. Even the condition of the existing Dhangadhi stadium is pathetic,' said Khadka of the Provincial Sports Council.