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Usha to get site for dream project

The Usha School of Athletics, an ambitious dream of India's sprint queen P T Usha, has cleared another hurdle with the Kerala government taking a positive stand on the ace athlete's request for a site to set up the proposed venture.

State Industries Minister Suseela Gopalan assured Usha that the Kerala Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation will allot the required 31-acre land for the proposed school at Koyilandy in Kozhikode district.

The ace athlete, along with her husband Sreenivasan, are into a project of spotting young talent and imparting them scientific training.

The Rs 310 million project requires at least 31 acres land, and only after getting the site, preliminary work can begin, Usha informed the minister on Tuesday.

The state government had announced assistance of Rs 1.5 million in the last budget, but Usha said at least Rs 150 million is needed to get started.

The sprint queen and her husband hope to raise Rs 30 million from the Centre, Kerala and other state governments. They also plan to mobilise Rs 5 million from local bodies, Rs 50 million from nongovernment agencies, Rs 40 million from sports bodies, Rs 25 million from other contributions, Rs 150 million from sponsors and Rs 10 million from promoters.

The proposed centre, which will have hostel facilities, will spot young talent below the age of 12 and train them as per international standards, and take care of their education as well.

Usha informed that some Bombay based corporate houses had offered financial assistance to the project. However, she said, the conditions were unfavourable.

UNI