Khelo India Youth Games 2021: Kalaripayattu, Mallakhamba among 4 new games

The upcoming fourth edition of the annual Khelo India Youth Games is starting to take shape, which is slated to be held next in 2021, in Haryana. Meanwhile, it would witness significant development in the form of some additional sports.

It was on Sunday when the Sports Ministry came up with the decision to add four more Indigenous Games in the competition. These sports would be Gatka, Kalaripayattu, Thang-Ta and Mallakhamba.

Explaining these sports, Gatka happens to be a traditional fighting style that originated in the state of Punjab, used as mostly as self-defence, while it is also a sport nowadays. As for Kalaripayattu, it stems from Kerala and happens to be a combat sport involving a sword and a shield, while it a popular sport in the state.

Thang-Ta is once again a sword combat sport, which mainly hails from the North-East state of Manipur. Meanwhile, Mallakhamba is a popular structural sport, famous in Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, as it is mostly performed on festive occasions, which sees men standing over each other to replicate a symbolic structure.

According to a statement by the Sports Ministry, Sports Minister Kieran Rijju said, “India has a rich heritage of indigenous sports, and it is a priority for the Sports Ministry to preserve, promote and popularise these games. There is no better platform than the Khelo India Games where athletes of these games can compete. The games have huge popularity and is telecast across the country by Star Sports, so I am confident that in the 2021 Khelo India Youth Games these four disciplines, along with Yogasana, will get their much-deserved attention among sports enthusiasts and youth of the country. In the coming years, we will be able to add more indigenous sports at the Khelo Games.”

Also, president of National Gatka Association of India, Harjeet Singh Grewal, was delighted with the inclusion of the sport, as he reckoned, “We are glad to know that the Sports Ministry has included Indian ancient martial art Gatka in the Khelo India Youth Games. We are sure that this effort of Khelo India will certainly help to promote and revive a forgotten Indian traditional martial art having a historical significance. In addition, this step will give boost to the efforts of National Gatka Association of India in furtherance of creating awareness in the country as well as overseas.”

Secretary of Thang-Ta Federation of India, Vinod Sharma, too, stated, “Over 400 athletes from different States will participate in the competition. We want to be very successful in the competition and this will help us get more recognition nationally and internationally.”

The Khelo India Youth Games involves young Indian kids take part across sports of their interest, showcasing their brilliant skills. It also helps in identifying a particular talent as a national prospect in the coming days.