Former Indian footballer Bhaichung Bhutia will on May 1 launch a soccer academy-cum-coaching centre in Siliguri.

The ace footballer’s club United Sikkim Football Club (USFC) and the Salugara Netrabindu Sangha, a football club based in northeastern part of Siliguri, will jointly run the coaching programme, while using the latter’s infrastructure with aim to promote budding footballers and provide them exposure in national level soccer tournaments.

Bhutia, who made the announcement here on Monday, said: “There is no dearth of competent footballers in north Bengal. But hardly a few of them can be found playing at the national level soccer events. Also, in the tournaments of different age groups, it is tough to find a player from this region. Our main objective is to provide them an appropriate platform and build up a strong base from grass root level through our coaching.”

Bhutia will monitor the entire coaching process on a regular basis and will provide coaching and other technical support to players, who join the coaching centre.

“I am in touch with some educational institutions to conduct similar coaching programmes for promising footballers who are based in Bagdogra and Shivmandir, located in the northwestern outskirts of Siliguri. We have plans to develop a full-fledged residential football academy henceforth somewhere near Bagdogra for footballers who are based in tea estates or dwell in the surrounding areas of Siliguri,” said Bhutia.

Tshering Topgyal Lama, the president of Salugara Netrabindu Sangha, said: “For years, we have been organising soccer tournaments and working on promotion of the game in the region. It is indeed a matter of pride for us to start the project with Bhutia.”