Kodava families launch fifth edition of ‘Ker Bali Namme’ at Napoklu

Madikeri: The fifth edition of ‘Ker Bali Namme', a tug-of-war tournament organised by Kodava families to promote rural sports, commenced Thursday at Napoklu.The annual event is being held between Kodava family teams and is hosted this year by the Cheeyakapoovanda family. The tournament is supported by the Kodava Tug-of-war Academy and is being conducted on Karnataka Public School grounds in Napoklu.Organisers said 189 men's teams and 85 women's teams have registered for the competition. The event will continue till Sunday.The sports activities were inaugurated after a traditional procession by members of the Cheeyakapoovanda family. Virajpet MLA AS Ponnanna inaugurated the tournament.Speaking on the occasion, Ponnanna assured support for further development of sports in the district. "Like hockey and cricket, the tug-of-war tournament has successfully reached its fifth year. This sport too must create a record in the coming years," he said.He said several initiatives are under way to promote sports in the district. A residential school for boys and girls will be opened in Ponnampet, and renovation of the turf ground will be taken up at a cost of Rs 3.5 crore, he added.Ponnanna also said 11.5 acres have been identified for a sports complex in Badaga village. Of the total project cost, Rs 30 crore has been allocated by the government and Rs 15 crore by Rajya Sabha member Ajay Maken.C Arun Machaiah, state vice-president of the Karnataka Sports Authority, said more facilities were needed for the development of sports in the district.
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