Kerala child rights panel directs inclusion of rugby in state school sports meet

The Kerala child rights panel has directed the state government to include rugby in the upcoming annual state school sports meet. Directions have been given to conduct the competition within the stipulated timeframe, while ordering urgent implementation of a related High Court directive, the Keralam State Commission for Protection of Child Rights said in a statement here on Saturday.

The panel also directed the General Education Department to urgently decide on conducting a special district or state-level competition, or a transparent selection trial, after ensuring adequate facilities, recognised competition formats, age categories and safety arrangements. The authorities should take steps to ensure that children do not lose the opportunity to participate in national-level competitions, taking into account the dates of the national event, eligibility criteria and entry submission deadlines, the panel said in its order. It also directed the authorities to include rugby in the schedule of the 2026-27 National School Games and amend the state school sports meet manual accordingly.

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The order was issued by a full bench comprising commission members Dr F Wilson and P Shajesh Bhaskar, it said. The petition was filed by Ameya Sandeep, a student of a government school here who had represented the Under-18 girls' team at the National Rugby Championship 2026. Although rugby has been included in the 70th National School Games conducted by the School Games Federation of India (SGFI), the sport has not yet been included in the Keralam State School Games manual, the petition said. The petitioner has earlier approached the education department seeking inclusion of the sport, contending that its exclusion denied opportunities to several children playing rugby in the state.

After her request was rejected, she moved the High Court, which directed the government to consider the matter seriously. The commission issued the order with the Special Secretary of the General Education Department, Director of General Education, Sports Organiser and Joint Director of the Kerala State School Games arrayed as respondents, the statement added.