Dasara Sports Meet from Oct. 11 to 14

Mysuru, Sept. 18 (MK&DM)- With Dasara just a month away, preparations for the key State-level Dasara Sports Meet are gaining pace at the Chamundi Vihar Stadium in Nazarbad, with development and renovation works under way.

The four-day Dasara Sports Meet will be held from Oct. 11 to 14 under the aegis of the Department of Youth Empowerment and Sports (DYES) and the Dasara Sports Meet Sub-Committee.

Development works are being taken up both inside and outside the stadium. Works on the spectators’ gallery, including the installation of a cantilever roof, are being carried out at a cost of Rs. 8 cr. Painting, interior lighting, cleaning of the tracks and marking of lanes are also in progress.

As a prelude to the State-level meet, Taluk, District and Divisional-level sports meets are being held across the State.

Sportspersons who excel at the Taluk and District-level meets will get an opportunity to participate in the State-level Dasara Sports Meet.

The Divisional-level meet has been organised under five divisions — Bengaluru Urban, Bengaluru Rural, Kalaburagi, Mysuru and Belagavi. Winners of the State-level Dasara Sports Meet will receive the prestigious Chief Minister’s Cup.

Karate returns

Last year, 27 sporting disciplines were included in the Dasara Sports Meet, with Karate being left out. This year, Karate has been reintroduced, taking the number of disciplines to 28. The events include athletics, team events, swimming, cyclothon and body-building, among others.

The Dasara Sports Meet will be conducted at more than 10 venues, including the Chamundi Vihar Stadium and the Sports Pavilion of University of Mysore.

Meanwhile, DYES Assistant Director Bhaskar Nayak said the name of the chief guest for the inaugural event the Dasara Sports Meet had not yet been finalised.

He said it was customary to invite top national and international sportspersons to inaugurate the Dasara Sports Meet.

There has been a demand from some quarters to invite Commonwealth Games medal-winning para-athlete K.S. Shilpa, a native of Mysuru district, to inaugurate the event. However, a final decision is yet to be taken, he added.