The New Indian Express ·
Treat physical education as core curriculum, says Tamil Nadu Governor
TIRUCHY: Stressing that sports must be integrated into mainstream education, Tamil Nadu Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar on Saturday said physical education should be treated as an essential part of the curriculum rather than as an extracurricular or co-curricular activity.
Addressing a one-day national workshop on "NEP 2020 - Redefining Sports and Physical Education in Higher Education" at National College in Tiruchy, he said there must be a shift in approach from focusing only on top performers to ensure wider student participation.
Referring to India's efforts to host the Olympics in 2036, he said, "We are a strong contender. We will have infrastructure by then, but we need to start preparing participants from now. That ground for preparation is our educational system."
He stressed that emerging technologies must be used in physical education and training.
Highlighting India's growing global standing, he said the country is currently hosting the BRICS Summit 2026 in New Delhi and added, "We need to play a big role not just on the geopolitical stage, but also on grounds and fields."
Calling for data-driven discussions, the Governor said there should be a clear assessment of how many schools and colleges have proper physical education infrastructure, how many have trained physical educators, and how many students actively participate.
"We need data on all this to understand the difficulties in propagating physical education," he said.
"If you need any help, the government is with you, and I will personally help you," he assured.
Describing the National Education Policy 2020 as the first policy that is highly student-centric, he said it moves away from being teacher- and institution-centric.
"Like how it is said we need a sound mind for a sound body, we must also understand that we need a sound body for a sound mind," he added.
After the event, the Governor visited Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam. It may be noted that the print and visual media journalists were denied permission to cover the event, citing 'security concerns' despite the invitation to the media houses from the organisers.