Hockey India today inducted newly-formed Hockey Gangpur (Odisha), a body set up by former international players, as an associate member.
HI now has 17 associate members, 27 affiliated members and two state Olympic association members.
With this inclusion, Hockey Gangpur (Odisha) can take part in all the National Championships to be conducted by HI in future.
Gangpur and its surrounding areas have produced numerous Olympians and international players and now with the entry of Hockey Gangpur (Odisha) in the mainstream, it will help in the further development of sport in the tribal areas.
"Many players including Dilip Tirkey, Ignace Tirkey, Prabodh Tirkey, Michael Kindo, Lazarus Barla and Subhadra Pradhan have played at international level from the Gangpur region and the entry of Hockey Gangpur (Odisha) would play a major role in promoting and developing hockey in the tribal areas of Gangpur," HI secretary general Narinder Batra said in a statement.
"We are hopeful that three-time Olympian and former captain Dilip Tirkey who is the president of Hockey Gangpur (Odisha) and its other members who are former international players can help the development of more talent in their region."
Dilip Tirkey, a Rajya Sabha member, is the president while Debashish Gouda is the general secretary of Hockey Gangpur (Odisha).
