{"id":11786,"date":"2026-08-19T11:37:45","date_gmt":"2026-08-19T11:37:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/?p=11786"},"modified":"2026-08-19T11:37:55","modified_gmt":"2026-08-19T11:37:55","slug":"bhagwant-manns-sports-push-punjab-targets-10-lakh-participants-as-khedan-wattan-punjab-diyan-enters-fourth-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/?p=11786","title":{"rendered":"Bhagwant Mann\u2019s Sports Push: Punjab Targets 10 Lakh Participants as \u2018Khedan Wattan Punjab Diyan\u2019 Enters Fourth Season"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Punjab is preparing for what the state government says will be its biggest grassroots sporting event yet, with Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann announcing that more than 10 lakh participants are expected to take part in the fourth edition of \u2018Khedan Wattan Punjab Diyan\u2019.

The games will begin in Bathinda on 5 September and conclude in Patiala on 29 November. The government is presenting the initiative as a major effort to revive Punjab\u2019s sporting culture, identify talent in villages and towns, and provide young people with a constructive alternative to drugs.

Mann said the sporting festival was intended to take the search for talent beyond established sporting centres and into villages, towns and cities across the state. The objective, he said, is to identify promising athletes at an early stage and prepare them for national and international competition.

The scale of the 2026 edition marks a significant expansion. Competitions will be held in 38 sports, along with four para-sports \u2014 athletics, powerlifting, badminton and wheelchair basketball. Participants will be drawn from nine age categories, ranging from 14-year-olds to people above the age of 70.

The government is also emphasising the inclusive nature of the event. Previous editions saw members of different generations of the same family participate, and the administration hopes to make such participation a defining feature of the 2026 games.

For the first time, boys\u2019 and girls\u2019 tennis-ball cricket has also been included as a demonstration sport.

From village playgrounds to the national stage

The competitions will be conducted at block, district and state levels, covering all 153 blocks and 23 districts of Punjab. State-level competitions will be held across 16 districts between October and November.

The government is also seeking to make participation easier. A QR-code-based registration system has been introduced for the first time, while players can also register through the Sports Department\u2019s online portal. Registration is free.

A torch relay, or \u2018Mashaal March\u2019, began on 12 August and is travelling through Punjab\u2019s districts before reaching Bathinda for the opening ceremony on 5 September.

The initiative is closely linked to the Mann government’s wider emphasis on sports infrastructure. The government says 3,100 rural sports grounds are being developed across Punjab, with the aim of bringing organised sporting activity closer to young people in villages.

Cash prizes and employment benefits

The state government is offering financial incentives to medal winners. At the state level, gold medalists will receive \u20b910,000, silver medalists \u20b97,000 and bronze medalists \u20b95,000.

Medal winners up to the age of 40 will also receive Gradation Certificates, allowing them to seek benefits available under the sports quota in government employment.

The government says the first three editions distributed \u20b925.51 crore in prize money. The first season attracted around 3.5 lakh participants, the second more than four lakh and the third around 4.35 lakh. The games were not held in 2025 because of floods.

Beyond the tournament, the government says it has distributed more than \u20b9135 crore in prize money to 40,415 players across Punjab since 2022.

Financial assistance is also being provided to athletes preparing for major competitions, including \u20b915 lakh for Olympic preparation and \u20b98 lakh for preparation for the Asian Games and Commonwealth Games.

Mann links sports directly to the anti-drug campaign

The Chief Minister has made the fight against drugs one of the central arguments behind the state’s sports drive.

His government argues that keeping young people involved in organised sport can channel their energy into productive activities, promote discipline and create an environment less vulnerable to substance abuse.

Mann has described sports as one of the most effective tools available to the state in its campaign against drugs, while also linking sporting participation with the wider social and economic development of Punjab.

The government is therefore attempting to position \u2018Khedan Wattan Punjab Diyan\u2019 as more than a sporting tournament. It is being presented as part of a broader youth policy aimed at combining physical activity, talent development and social engagement.

Punjab\u2019s sporting legacy at the centre of the campaign

The sports campaign also draws upon Punjab\u2019s long-established reputation for producing elite athletes.

The government has highlighted the presence of several Punjab-born captains at the national level, including Indian hockey captain Harmanpreet Singh, Indian men\u2019s cricket captain Shubman Gill, Indian women\u2019s cricket captain Harmanpreet Kaur and Indian basketball captain Palpreet Singh Brar.

Mann has also pointed to Punjab\u2019s performance at the 2023 Asian Games, where athletes from the state won 20 medals, including eight gold, six silver and six bronze. The government says this surpassed the state’s previous record of 15 medals at the 1951 Asian Games.

Punjab is also scheduled to host matches of the Hockey Asian Champions Trophy in Jalandhar and Mohali later this year, another event the government sees as an opportunity to reconnect the public with the state’s hockey tradition.

Can mass participation create a new generation of champions?

The fourth edition of \u2018Khedan Wattan Punjab Diyan\u2019 represents an ambitious attempt to turn sport into a mass movement in Punjab.

But the longer-term test will be whether the huge participation figures can translate into sustained sporting careers. Identifying talent is only the first step. Coaching, sports medicine, quality infrastructure, regular competitions and financial support will determine whether promising athletes can progress from village-level contests to national and international platforms.

For the Bhagwant Mann government, however, the message is clear: sport is being placed at the heart of its strategy for youth engagement.

With 10 lakh participants expected, competitions in 38 sports and four para-sport disciplines, and participation extending from teenagers to senior citizens, Punjab is preparing for a sporting event designed to reach almost every section of society.

At a time when the state continues to grapple with concerns over drugs and opportunities for young people, the government hopes the playing field itself can become an important part of the solution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Punjab is preparing for what the state government says will be its biggest grassroots sporting event yet, with Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann announcing that more than 10 lakh participants are expected to take part in the fourth edition of \u2018Khedan Wattan Punjab Diyan\u2019. The games will begin in Bathinda on 5 September and conclude […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":11785,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[24,22],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-11786","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-politics","8":"category-punjab-2"},"aioseo_notices":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/img_20260819_1706168173233658830109013.jpg",648,478,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/img_20260819_1706168173233658830109013-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/img_20260819_1706168173233658830109013-300x221.jpg",300,221,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/img_20260819_1706168173233658830109013.jpg",648,478,false],"large":["https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/img_20260819_1706168173233658830109013.jpg",648,478,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/img_20260819_1706168173233658830109013.jpg",648,478,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/img_20260819_1706168173233658830109013.jpg",648,478,false],"td_150x0":["https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/img_20260819_1706168173233658830109013-150x111.jpg",150,111,true],"td_218x150":["https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/img_20260819_1706168173233658830109013-218x150.jpg",218,150,true],"td_300x0":["https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/img_20260819_1706168173233658830109013-300x221.jpg",300,221,true],"td_324x400":["https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/img_20260819_1706168173233658830109013-324x400.jpg",324,400,true],"td_485x360":["https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/img_20260819_1706168173233658830109013-485x360.jpg",485,360,true],"td_696x0":["https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/img_20260819_1706168173233658830109013.jpg",648,478,false],"td_1068x0":["https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/img_20260819_1706168173233658830109013.jpg",648,478,false],"td_1920x0":["https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/img_20260819_1706168173233658830109013.jpg",648,478,false],"td_265x198":["https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/img_20260819_1706168173233658830109013-265x198.jpg",265,198,true],"td_741x486":["https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/img_20260819_1706168173233658830109013.jpg",648,478,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Praveen Soni","author_link":"https:\/\/jeevaypunjab.com\/?author=2"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Punjab is preparing for what the state government says will be its biggest grassroots sporting event yet, with Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann announcing that more than 10 lakh participants are expected to take part in the fourth edition of \u2018Khedan Wattan Punjab Diyan\u2019. 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