Extreme cold weather and the disruption in train services have led the Athletics Federation of India and the Sports Development Authority of Bihar to defer the 18th National Inter-District Junior Athletics Meet (NIDJAM) at the Patliputra Sports Complex in Patna. NIDJam will now be held from February 10 to 12.
“The cold wave, leading to schools being closed, and the disruptions in train services have forced the rescheduling of NIDJAM from the earlier dates of January 12 to 14,” AFI President Adille J. Sumariwalla said. “With approximately 6000 boys and girls from nearly 600 districts due to compete in the flagship meet, we had to factor their safety in making the decision.”
Each edition of NIDJAM touches the lives of more than 100,000 boys and girls in the under-14 and under-16 age groups across the country and is among the world’s largest talent hunt programmes in a single sport. It is the meet that gives athletes from 600 districts the first taste of a national competition.
Some of India’s brightest athletics stars like javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra (2012), sprinter Dutee Chand (2011), 400m runner V Subha (2014) and Shaili Singh (2019) are among those who cut their teeth in the earlier editions of NIDJAM.
