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Richa Mishra from Delhi who won three gold medals at the 32nd National Games in Hyderabad.

HYDERABAD, Dec. 17

THE Andhra Pradesh Government's aggressive approach in luring industries from other States is being replicated in the sports arena as well. And the `gamble' in the sports field seems to be paying rich dividends.

The Chief Minister, Mr N. Chandrababu Naidu, has announced cash incentives to sportspersons from other States willing to compete under the banner of Andhra Pradesh and win a medal.

Accordingly, for a gold medal, the reward is Rs 3 lakh. If it is silver, the reward is Rs 2 lakh and for a bronze Rs 1 lakh. The cash incentive first drew a large number of sportspersons to Andhra Pradesh. And its impact was visible from the beginning of the Games, in the impressive show by the State in the medals tally.

With 31 golds, 29 silver and 25 bronze, Andhra Pradesh is just one medal short of the leading State - Punjab. If you compare this performance with the last National Games, when the State finished in the bottom half with around a dozen gold medals, the success of the strategy to lure sportspersons with cash incentives becomes evident.

Getting sportspersons from other States and rival camps to represent clubs, especially in football, has been a routine practice for several years now. Sportspersons such as cricketers moving to smaller States to play the Ranji Trophy for better prospects to represent the country in tests and incentive from the respective State Cricket Boards has also been in vogue. However, the `big' money rewards and aggressive strategy, especially in athletics and other sports, is perhaps a novel approach by Andhra Pradesh. This seems to be in line with the Government's pro-active role in wooing industries, whether it is information technology or biotechnology, to set up shop in the State, with claims of a single-window system of clearance with lots of incentives.

For sportspersons outside of cricket, which rakes in virtually 90 per cent of sponsorship and incentives, the financial rewards from the State Government have come as a boost.

Richa Mishra, the Delhi swimmer representing Andhra Pradesh, earned Rs 9 lakh already with three golds, while Gulab Chand, the long-distance runner made a neat Rs 6 lakh in a couple of hours with two golds on day one.

While for sports and sportspersons, especially in disciplines which the cricket-crazy public and sponsors do not seem to have much concern, this move by the Government could be welcome, but the moot question is whether it will unleash an `unhealthy' competition among States to lure athletes for temporary gains and push the spirit of games into jeopardy.

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