Rebel-hit Gumla district in Jharkhand will conduct a football league to dissuade youths from joining Maoist outfits.

District police will be introducing the league as part of community policing.

“All the 18 police stations in the districts have been asked to hold meetings with the local youths and form teams,” said Ehtesham Waquarib, superintendent of police, Gumla.

“The teams from each police station will vie among themselves and one team will be selected for the league after which teams would be selected for the quarter-finals phase and the winners will enter the semi-finals and then the final match would be played at the district headquarter,” he said, adding the matches would start in a week and the tournament will finish in March.

The senior officer said that the prime objectives behind holding such competitions are to encourage youth to join the mainstream, change the wrong perception towards security personnel and help talented youths in getting employment in paramilitary, state police, and army.

“This is an effort to reach out to the youths and build a relationship, which would help us pay dividends in our fight against Maoist menace,” the SP said.

Significantly, out of the 18 police stations in the district, over 10 are Maoist affected and three blocks of Jari, Raidih, and Dumri share a border with Chhattisgarh and are used by Maoists to escape to other states taking advantage of the dense forest after committing crimes.

“Apart from those who give their names for football teams and get selected, other youths can also get their name registered in their nearest police stations and we would provide them training in physical fitness required in selection for state police, para-military, and defense through experts in our department. It would be completely free of cost. The arrangement would also be made for the youths to stay during the training period,” the officer said.

Winners of football matches will be given cash prizes while all participating team members will be given sports dresses and shoes.

Waquarib has taken the initiative of visiting the families of hardcore Maoists and convincing the parents to persuade them to join the mainstream and take benefits from the state government’s surrender policy for rebels.

The Sports Action towards Harnessing Aspiration of Youth (SAHAY) scheme was launched in December last year in five rebel hit districts of West Singhbhum, Gumla, Simdega, Seraikela-Kharsawan, and Khunti in which sports competitions were organised by sports departments in Maoist-hit areas to showcase talents of youths in different sports disciplines.