Sports Ministry confirms the recognition of Handball Association of India

The Sports Ministry has decided to recognise the Handball Association of India (HAI) as the official body to run the game in the country, on Tuesday.

The recognition means the longstanding impasse over running the sport comes to an end with Digvijay Chautala as the president of HAI and Jagan Mohan Rao as its secretary general.

The impasse was ended after the Indian Olympic Association decided to intervene between the two fighting bodies leading to the merger of the Handball Association of India and the Handball Federation of India.

The amicable resolution assumes importance as India has been preparing for the upcoming Hangzhou Asian Games.

In a letter directed to the president and secretary general of HAI, the ministry said, "To have a fully functional NSF to run the affairs of the sport of handball, the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports has decided to recognise the Handball Association of India as NSF for the promotion and regulation of handball in the country with immediate effect."

"While deciding HAI as NSF for handball, the ministry has taken into account the fact that the HAI is duly affiliated to the international governing body for the sport of handball viz., International Handball Federation, the Asian Handball Federation and also the Indian Olympic Association," the letter stated.

Both bodies- HFI and HAI had been fighting to be the legitimate national federation for Handball for the past few years leading to Handball being dropped from the National Games in Gujarat last year due to the confusion as to which body would run the show.

The ministry noted in the letter, "Further, the election of the HAI has been held under the supervision of Retd. District Judge Justice Deepak Kumar Srivastava."

After being elected to the top two posts, both Chautala and Rao vowed to work in unison for the betterment of handball in India.