Gurugram, Dec 23, 2024, IANS

Gurugram, Dec 23 (IANS) Holistic International Pravasi Sports Association (HIPSA) president Kanthi D Suresh feels men and women playing under the same banner in the upcoming Global Indian Pravasi Kabaddi League (GI-PKL) will send a message of women empowerment. Ahead of the start of season 1 of the Global Pravasi Kabaddi League (GPKL), the organisers have announced the merger of the league with Indian Premier Kabaddi League (IPKL) to launch a new league called Global Indian Pravasi Kabaddi League (GI-PKL) which will see both men and women players competing on the same mat size under the same league banner. The HIPSA president feels GI-PKL is an exciting concept as it is the first of its kind Kabaddi league where men & women play on the same mat size under the same league banner. GI-PKL will have the same vision of Pravasi Sports and both the men's and women's team will ensure player representation from countries across the world. "This is a strategic move to make the property stronger by having men and women together under the same banner, with a similar vision," Kanthi D Suresh said in a statement. "It not only helps in the achievement of our larger objectives, but it also sends a message of Women empowerment when playing under the same league alongside their male counterparts, something which has never happened before.’ Its an exciting concept and we look forward to executing this soon," she added. Sohan Tusir, Director of the IPKL said that the prospect of a franchisee owner having both a men's team and a womens team is making the property attractive as he has received significant interest regarding the same. Certain celebrities are also tipped to be part of GI-PKL and look to owning two teams together. HIPSA’s past initiatives underline its commitment to kabaddi’s global growth. In 2023, GPKL signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Haryana government to promote women’s kabaddi worldwide. Previously, HIPSA entered a 10-year MOU with the World Kabaddi Body, based in the United Kingdom, to expand the sport across continents. These efforts align with the ambitious goal of including kabaddi in the Olympics by meeting criteria such as active participation in at least 75 countries for men and 45 for women across four continents. Karthik Dammu, lead actor in the three National award-winning movie, Fouja, who is also AVP for GPKL, said, "The Championship trophy winner for GI-PKL will be a big surprise, as the entire process of declaring the champion besides the men's winner and the women's winner, will be a unique concept. I don’t want to reveal it all now, but all I can only say is that, the GI-PKL Championship winner can be either a men's team or a women's team irrespective of who the respective men's and women's team winners are." GI-PKL will begin with 12 teams, with 6 men's and 6 women's teams. A total of 66 matches would be part of the first season. The league will spread over almost close to a month. There seems to be significant interest in the Kabaddi circles about this new concept and an eagerness to be part of the same. The Indian Kabaddi administration continues to be in an imbroglio with the national federation being suspended by their international affiliate and also derecognised by the Sports Ministry. While the dispute continues in the Judicial courts, the new sports governance bill likely to be introduced soon, gives a glimmer of hope to streamline sports administration in India. The sports regulatory body proposed as part of the bill is set to take over all cases that are currently in dispute and ensure that the Sports administration process is in sync with International Olympic Committee and also the respective international federations that regulate the sport at a global level.