At a time when Assembly elections are being held in five States, the Naveen Patnaik government in Odisha has launched an ambitious initiative aimed at youth. The Integrated Youth Development Programme (IYDP) envisages a flurry of sports tournaments and cultural competitions for students through December and January, barely a few months before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
While the Odisha government says the scheme’s primary aim is to foster engagement of youth in sports, culture, and social endeavours, dissenting voices from Opposition parties dismissed it as a calculated move for political advantage.
Over 12,000 teams with members in the age group of 13-35 years have registered to participate in tournaments in six disciplines — cricket, hockey, football, kabaddi, kho-kho, and volleyball — under the ‘Yuba Odisha Nabin Odisha (Nua-O)‘ initiative. Currently, the Department of Sports and Youth Services has 5,000 teams registered for cricket, 2,000 teams for football, 200 teams for hockey, 1,300 teams for kabbadi, 700 teams for kho-kho, and 1,700 teams registered to compete in volleyball.
