NRAI working on SOP for holding national camp in July

By Rohit Mundayur

New Delhi, May 20 (SocialNews.XYZ) The National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) is sticking to a timeline that allows for holding a camp for national shooters at the Karni Singh Shooting Range in New Delhi in July. NRAI Secretary Rajiv Bhatia said that for now, the federation is working with the range's administrators on a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for the camp.

"We are working on the SOP now and we have requested the shooting range to tell us what protocols the shooters will have to follow. Accordingly we will make our overall protocols and then at least shooters who are available nearby in Delhi or elsewhere can start training," Bhatia told IANS on Wednesday.

"It will either have to be held early morning or evening because it is very hot at the range. Moreover the range has been closed now for two months so it will take time to prepare the place and sanitise everything.

"I hope they are working on that, I have sent a mail to the administrator to inform us what shooting specific protocols are to be followed."

The NRAI is yet to work out a specific date for the camp and Bhatia said that attendance will not be made compulsory for anyone.

"The first thing is (safety of) the athletes. Whether it be the coaches or the athletes themselves, if somebody doesn't want to come, they can opt out, we won't force them to come to the range," he said.

The Sports Authority of India (SAI) had announced the formation of the six-member committee headed by Secretary Rohit Bharadwaj on May 10 for designing the SOP for opening of stadiums and sports complexes for training. It has since created the 33-page document that now needs to be cleared by the Health Ministry and Home Ministry.

Bhatia however said that there will need to be SOPs specific to shooting before any camp can be held. "SAI's SOP is for all stadiums in general. Naturally, those guidelines are not the same for everyone and specific to the sport," he said.

Source: IANS