Kozhikode: The harrowing para-sailing of an 11-month-old baby has forced the Kannur district administration to formulate the state’s first ‘Standard Operational Procedure’ (SOP) for the conduct of adventure sports. The district collector will issue an order on Friday banning the participation of children below 14 years of age in such events.
At present, no organisation seeks prior permission of the authorities to conduct adventure sports and often the safety of the participants is overlooked.
The Kannur district administration has formed a committee comprising the district collector, DTPC secretary, police superintendent and the heads of district fire and rescue and the local body to screen the application and sanction adventure sports programmes.
Collector P. Bala Kiran told Deccan Chronicle, “We are planning an SOP as no laid out procedures are available in the state for the conduct of adventure sports. An order in this regard would be passed on Friday,” he said.
Adventure sports has been classified into four categories, aero sports, water sports, trekking and sports items conducted in hilly areas and jungle sports. “For children aged between 14 and 18, the consent of parents would be a must,” Mr Bala Kiran said.
Once the order is passed, adventure sport organisations should apply to the committee for prior approval charting out the nature of the sports, the safety measures in place and also the quality of the equipment used.
“Once the committee accords permission, the organisers will have to take up responsibility for anything that happens during the event,” the collector said. At present, the district administration finds it difficult to even identify the organisers of such events, especially when a mishap occurs.
