By Our Correspondent
KOLKATA: Union Minister for Education, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, presided over the kick-off programme today for the distribution of FIFA footballs as part of the Football for Schools (F4S) at PM SHRI Kendriya Vidyalaya, Fort William, Kolkata, West Bengal. The event was organised by the Ministry of Education and the All India Football Federation (AIFF). At the event 2487 FIFA footballs were distributed to 349 schools in Kolkata district. The programme was organised in 21 Kendriya Vidyalayas, simultaneously, covering all districts of West Bengal. In total, 88113 footballs will be distributed across the state.
Minister of State for Education and Development of the North Eastern Region, Dr. Sukanta Majumdar; Minister of State for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Shri Shantanu Thakur; Secretary, Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education (DoSEL), Shri Sanjay Kumar; Joint Secretary, DoSEL, Smt. Archana Sharma Awasthi; officials of the Ministry along with other distinguished dignitaries and eminent sportspersons were also present at the event. Sports captains (Boys and Girls) of the school shared their thoughts during the event.
The Football for Schools (F4S) programme, spearheaded by Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), aims to promote football at the grassroots level by making the sport more accessible to students within the school system.
In India, the programme is implemented by the DoSEL, with support from the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and the Sports Authority of India (SAI). Under the F4S program, FIFA is contributing more than 9.6 lakh footballs for school students of India besides 129 other countries (as of January 2025). Building on the success of earlier rollouts in states like Odisha in 2024, the F4S program in West Bengal is part of a nationwide movement underscoring India’s commitment to nurturing a sporting culture from the school level.
