Seven states and two union territories facilities upgraded to Khelo India State Centre of Excellence

"The KISCEs will be world-class facilities where the best sporting talent from all over the country will be trained to further India's Olympic dreams." These centres have made the cut based on their past performances, quality of infrastructure, management and sports culture in their respective states.

Facilities from seven states and two union territories have been upgraded to Khelo India State Centre of Excellence (KISCE) under the Khelo India scheme, the Sports Ministry said on Saturday. The states and UTs include Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Chandigarh, Goa, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Puducherry, Tripura and Jammu and Kashmir.

"The government is taking the two-pronged approach of developing grassroot level infrastructure on the one hand and creating facilities for sporting excellence on the other," Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju said in a release. "The KISCEs will be world-class facilities where the best sporting talent from all over the country will be trained to further India's Olympic dreams." These centres have made the cut based on their past performances, quality of infrastructure, management and sports culture in their respective states. "The assistance to these centres will be provided in the form of bridging the gaps in sports equipment, high performance managers, coaches, sports scientists, technical support, etc," the release said. Earlier this year, the Ministry had identified a total of 14 centres to be upgraded to KISCEs. The overall number now stands at 24 KISCEs from 23 states/UTs.

The latest KISCEs include: Andhra Pradesh – Dr. YSR Sports School, YSR District, Kadapa Chandigarh – Hockey Stadium, Sector – 42 Chhattisgarh - Rajya Khel Prashikshan Kendra, Bilaspur Goa – SAG Sports Complex, Campal, Panaji Haryana – Motilal Nehru School of Sports, Rai, Sonipat Himachal Pradesh – Indoor Stadium Luhnu Sports Complex, Bilaspur Puducherry – Rajiv Gandhi School of Sports, Uppallam Tripura - Dasarath Dev State Sports Complex, Badharghat, Agartala Jammu & Kashmir – i) M.A. Stadium,Fencing Academy,Jammu ii) J & K Sports Council water Sports Academy, Srinagar States/ UTs currently with KISCEs: States - Assam, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya, Sikkim, Karnataka, Odisha, Kerala, Telengana, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Chandigarh, Goa, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Tripura UTs - Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu, Puducherry, Jammu & Kashmir..