Proposal Critique — Harsh Saraf — General Secretary — Sports And Games
Link to the complete proposals:
https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B6l-0n0wTIWjUUg0UXFCMzNTQU0
Proposal 1- Setting up of an alumni network of all graduating inter IIT players and alumnus of each sport. Formation of Students’ Gymkhana External Grant Fund for specific contribution towards sports.
Need — The current system makes it very difficult for alumni to contribute specifically towards sports and this proposal aims to rectify that situation. This is a similar proposal to what Manish Datta presented, but the groundwork is much more comprehensive.
Implementation — His plans for the formation of a Sports Alumni Funds Body would help streamline the flow of funds from alumni. He has presented some solid groundwork on how it will work out financially and has also proposed the publishing of a yearly sports magazine to cater to the alumni.
Impact — The plans that he has presented, if carried out in a systematic manner will reap results in the form of increased funds for sports.
Proposal 2- Hiring of sports interns for each sport from the Sports Authority of India and other National Sports Coaching Institutes through a Memorandum of Understanding.
Need — Currently there is a dearth of coaches on campus for all sports all year round. The low coach to participant ratio also implies that there is a lack of attention to the individual needs of the participants in a majority of the sports. Hiring sports interns would help in alleviating this situation.
Implementation — His plans to hire interns for a period coinciding with Inter IIT practice can help improve our showing on that front. The feasibility of the proposal is an added advantage.
Impact — Hiring interns can solve the problem of paucity of coaches if the logistics are worked out properly.
Proposal 3- To introduce various measures to increase outreach of sports and the involvement of students through incentives :
- Organizing a separate introductory seminar for all first year students highlighting the sports culture of our institute.
- Introduction of Player of the Month award for each sport.
Need — The underwhelming showing of KGP’s Inter- IIT contingent calls for a more efficient use of the talent pool at our disposal. He seeks to introduce incentives to improve participation and spread awareness about GCs and Inter IIT.
Implementation — He has proposed an introductory seminar for the freshers. This was proposed last year and was not implemented so we are skeptical about it. He has also proposed to introduce a Player of the Month Award for various sports which is a pretty novel idea.
Impact — The Player of the Month would really help bringing the sports persons of KGP into much needed limelight and encourage students to take part in sporting activities. It would also a long way in the development of sporting culture on campus.
Proposal 4- Formation of “Technology Sports and Games Council” which will look after all activities and events related to all the sports in the institute.
Need — Similar to the above proposal, this seeks to improve participation in sports and bring the players to the limelight.
Implementation — Given the lack of active participation in sports as cited in his proposal, it remains to be seen how many people will turn up to apply to the council. It may lead to a situation where the council consists of people on the job just for the POR rather than a real desire to improve the sports culture of KGP.
Impact — While the proposals mentioned can improve participation and awareness about sports, it is quite obvious that the groundwork for the proposal is not as detailed as that of the other proposals, which is why we are not entirely convinced about its feasibility.
