ITANAGAR, Aug 12: The Arunachal Pradesh Football Association (APFA) in a special general body meeting on Monday declared Chief Minister Pema Khandu as the asso-ciation’s acting president.
Assuming the role of the APFA president, Khandu promised to work at all levels to spread the popularity of football in the state.
“Football being a poor man’s sport, people from any background can dream big, though lack of proper coaching facilities, infrastructure and a good football academy in the state are concerns that need to be addressed,” he said.
The chief minister said the immediate next step for the association would be to organise the 25th National Senior Women’s Football Championship, scheduled to be held in East Siang HQ Pasighat in the coming month, in a befitting manner.
“The best efforts will be made to make the event a grand success, since it’s a matter of pride for Arunachal to host a national level event,” Khandu said.
He said Arunachal has got a great fillip in developing sports infrastructure through the prime minister’s ‘Khelo India’ campaign.
“A majority of the upcoming stadiums in Arunachal are for football, and this should alleviate infrastructure issues to a great extent,” the CM said.
Outgoing APFA president Takam Sanjoy also spoke.
Present at the meeting were representatives from district football associations and members of the APFA. (CMO)
