Shooting ranges in Kodagu, Kanteerava

BANGALORE: Aspiring shooters in Kodagu district may soon have access to state-of-the-art infrastructure. The district deputy commissioner Anurag Tiwari is in discussion with the Department of Youth Empowerment and Sports (DYES) to build a modern range in Madhenadu village, 10 km from Madikeri.
The range has been proposed on a 35-acre land which the authorities recovered from encroachers.
"There are many skilful shooters in the district and if we can provide them the right infrastructure we will soon be able to create an assembly line for the national squad," said Tiwari.
"The idea of building a shooting range came during my discussions with former DYES director Vikash Kumar Vikash," said Tiwari. "Most of our shooters winning international medals, belong to the armed forces. So Vikash and I felt building a shooting facility will be a boon for civilian shooters.
Vikash had even requested PN Papanna, father of Glasgow Commonwealth Games silver medalist Prakash Nanjappa and a veteran shooter himself, to design the facility."
However, the process has slowed down following Vikash's transfer. "Now that Vikash is no longer in DYES, I have to present the idea to the new director HS Venkatesh to take it forward," Tiwari added.
When contacted, Venkatesh said: "I am not aware of the proposal as I have just taken charge. If there is any such plan, I will definitely look into it."
Meanwhile, Papanna is also sharing his expertise in developing an indoor shooting arena at the Sree Kanteerava stadium. The Rs 10-lakh facility is under construction and will be operational in few months.