Training facilities for youth should be enhanced: Aiyar

PORAYAR (TN), Dec 26: Union Sports Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar has said that training facilities in various disciplines needed to be enhanced so that more budding players could benefit from them.

At present only 10,000 youth out of a huge human resource of 77 crore were receiving training annually, Aiyar said.

"This number needs to increased immediately. This is an important cause for our poor show at International Level," he told reporters at Mayiladuthurai yesterday.

"In this regard, Village Sports Committees will be formed, integrating Nehru Yuva Kendras, local youth associations and the panchayat administration, to encourage and promote sporting talents," he said.

Stating that the 11th five-year plan would bring in a change in the approach to developing sports and games in India, the Minister said it would aim at setting up playgrounds in all panchayats in the country.

On Panchayati Raj, Aiyar said states such as Kerala, Karnataka and Sikkim had accorded significant powers to the local bodies.

Stating that nearly 12 lakh women had been serving in various capacities in rural and urban local bodies,Aiyar said India was perhaps the only country with such a huge number of women representatives in local bodies.

Stating that in many places, women representatives belonging to suppressed classes had performed exceedingly well, he urged the media to highlight their achievements.

Aiyar also said he was planning to meet Tamil Nadu local administration minister M.K.Stalin to discuss various development projects and about devolution of additional powers to the local bodies in Tamil Nadu.

Earlier, Aiyar, also chairman of District-Level Vigilance and Monitoring Committee for development works in Nagapattinam district, reviewed the progress of development works being carried out in various parts of the district at a meeting held in Mayiladuthurai.

District Collector Tenkasi S.Jawahar said both the Centre and State Governments had allocated Rs.83.25 crore for the development works in Nagapattinam district for 2005-2006 and pointed out that 43,664 works had been completed out of the 44,671 taken up. All works would be completed before end of March, he added. (PTI)

Warne reaches 700 test wickets as Aussies take charge

MELBOUENE, Dec 26: Shane Warne, roared on by an Ashes record crowd, created test history by becoming the first bowler to claim 700 wickets as dispirited England collapsed on the opening day of the fourth test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground today.

The master leg-spinner, playing in his penultimate test match ahead of his farewell Sydney test next week after announcing his retirement, captured 5-39 off 17.2 overs — his 37th five-wicket test haul, as England succumbed for 159 after winning the toss.

Australia reached stumps at 48 for two off 11 overs with Matthew Hayden 17 not out and Ricky Ponting yet to score after Justin Langer (27) and nightwatchman Brett Lee (0) were both caught behind off successive Andrew Flintoff deliveries.

It was a case of the bigger the stage the bigger the performance as Warne bowled Andrew Strauss for his 700th wicket just before tea and went on to claim four more scalps to take his career tally to 704 in his 144th test.

Warne produced his boxing day theatrics before an Ashes record crowd of 89,155, just shy of the world record single day’s test attendance of 90,800 for the second day of the fifth test against the West Indies at the MCG in 1961.

England would have been dismissed even more cheaply if not for some wretched Australian fielding, with wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist making a horrible hash of an attempted stumping when Kevin Pietersen was on his way to scoring 21.

Paul Collingwood was dropped by Gilchrist on two before making 28. Topscorer Andrew Strauss was put down by Matthew Hayden in the gully off Warne on 41, a straightforward chance and went on to score 50.

But it was Warne’s day on his home MCG pitch, receiving a sustained standing ovation when he was introduced into the bowling attack in the 41st over late in the middle session.

Thirty minutes later, the stadium was in uproar when Warne produced a signature leg-break to knock over Strauss’s middle stump and claim his 700th scalp.

Warne, who has been acclaimed as one of the all-time cricketing greats, having revolutionised the art of wrist-spin bowling, thought he had the prized scalp of Hampshire county team mate Pietersen when he was only four.

But Gilchrist mangled a stumping chance with England’s big batting gun hopelessly stranded metres down the pitch.

Flintoff continued his wretched batting series when he was out for 13, snapped up by Warne at first slip to give Stuart Clark his second wicket of the innings. Flintoff has scored 133 runs in seven innings in the series.

Chris Read, preferred to Geraint Jones as wicketkeeper for the first time in the series, was all at sea against Warne before lashing out in frustration to be caught by Ponting at short extra cover for three.

Sajid Mahmood gave Glenn McGrath his first wicket of the innings, caught behind for a duck, while Steve Harmison (7), Pietersen (21) and Monty Panesar (4) were dismissed by Warne to end the England innings. Warne has now taken 19 wickets in the series.

Opener Alastair Cook, who scored an obdurate six-and-a-half-hour century in the third Perth test, was caught by Gilchrist off Lee for 11 in the morning session and Ian Bell was trapped leg before wicket by Stuart Clark for seven. (AGENCIES)