New Delhi: The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports is shocked and deeply saddened at the gross apathy and negligence shown by the organizers of the 15th National Para-Athletic championship being held at Ghaziabad from March 20 to 22, 2015 wherein the participating athletes have been deprived of even the minimum facilities expected at a national sports event.

“The government is committed to inclusive sports development in the country and accords equal priority to both able-bodied and disabled-sport development in the country. The government provides liberal assistance to all National Sports Federations, including the Indian Paralympics Committee in organising national camps for the selection and preparation of national athletes for participation in major international events. The support provided includes modern infrastructure and coaching facilities, boarding and lodging, food supplements, sports science support, international exposure, etc,” said a statement from the ministry.

“Organising national championships at regular intervals is a core function and responsibility of each and every National Sports Federation, and they are expected to conduct the event in a professional manner, maintaining at least the minimum standards expected of an event being held at the national level. The government only supplements these efforts with some financial assistance, which is identical for all National Sports Federations. The organizers are expected to mobilise support from different sources to meet the budget,” it added.

“The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports is looking into the particular incident that has occurred at Ghaziabad and, if required, will not hesitate in issuing a comprehensive advisory or guidelines stipulating minimum standards that need to be maintained in terms of boarding, lodging and other facilities to be made available to athletes participating in a national championships so that such incidents do not repeat in future,” the statement said.