Ludhiana, Sept. 24 -- With block-level primary school games underway across the district, government primary schools are facing hardships in organising sports events due to a shortage of dedicated sports instructors and long delays in the release of sanctioned funds.

Teachers said despite directives from the education department to conduct the competitions, no grants have been disbursed yet, forcing teachers to either spend from their own pockets or rely on financial assistance from local panchayats.

Jagjit Singh Mann, district president of the Government Teachers' Union and a teacher at Government Primary School, Mangli Uchi, said the department was scheduled to provide Rs.2,000 for centre-level games and Rs.5,000 for block-level compe...