IGDF General Assembly 2025 Held Successfully, New Executive Council Elected

New Delhi | January 2026 The Indian Gilli-Danda Federation (IGDF) successfully conducted its General Assembly Meeting 2025 in accordance ...

New Delhi | January 2026

The Indian Gilli-Danda Federation (IGDF) successfully conducted its General Assembly Meeting 2025 in accordance with the Federation’s Constitution. The meeting was chaired by the President/Chairperson and attended by representatives from State Associations, Trustees, and Nominated Members from across the country.

During the meeting, the General Assembly unanimously elected the Executive Council for the term 2025–2029. The newly elected office bearers are Mrs. Soni Bharat (Uttar Pradesh) as President, Mr. M. Manoj (Kerala) as Vice President, Dr. Arun Kumar (Rajasthan) as Secretary, Mr. Mustkeem Ansari (Uttar Pradesh) as Joint Secretary, Mr. Ravinder Kumar (Uttar Pradesh) as Treasurer, Mr. Shankar Uttam Gaikwad (Maharashtra) as Executive Member, and Master BK Bharat (GDIF) as Technical Director. The House approved and ratified the Executive Council and authorized it to function as per IGDF rules and regulations.

The General Assembly also approved the admission and continuation of memberships. Individual memberships of Bhupendra Kumar Bharat, Ravinder Kumar, Kuldeep Kumar, and Soni Bharat were unanimously approved. Membership and continuation of 13 State Gilli-Danda Associations, including Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Rajasthan, Haryana, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Assam, Telangana, Bengal, and Uttarakhand, were also approved, subject to compliance with IGDF norms.

A revised organizational structure of IGDF was presented and unanimously approved. The structure includes a Governing Council comprising the Board of Trustees, State Associations, and Nominated Members, along with an Executive Council consisting of the President, Vice Presidents, Secretary General, Joint Secretaries, Treasurer, and Executive Members.

The House approved the new IGDF Membership Fee Structure, fixing the Individual Membership fee at ₹1,000 for two years, Institutional Membership at ₹5,000 annually, State Association Membership at ₹10,000 annually, Corporate Membership at ₹20,000, and Honorary Membership as non-voting.

The General Assembly further approved official IGDF Certification Programs, including the National Gilli-Danda Instructor Course/License and National Gilli-Danda Referee/Umpire Course. These certifications will cover eligibility, examination procedures, validity, renewal, and certification benefits. Examinations will be conducted under the supervision of the Technical Director of IGDF or GDIF.

The voting rights structure was also finalized, granting two votes each to Founder/Trustees and Registered State Associations, one vote to Non-Registered State Associations, and one vote to Nominated Members.

Future activities of IGDF were discussed and approved, including State and National Gilli-Danda Tournaments, Seminars, and Workshops. The Executive Council was authorized to plan and execute these programs across India.

The House also took note of major recognitions achieved by IGDF and GDIF, including approval as RSF/NSF by the Association for National Sports Federations (TAFISA India) since 2017, Associate Membership of the Traditional Sports and Games Federation India since 2018, international recognition by GAWSF/ISNO since 2020, membership of the Asian Traditional Sports and Games Association since 2022, and the demonstration of Gilli-Danda at the Khelo India Rural & Indigenous Games 2023 in Odisha. Recognition by the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Government of India, is currently under examination.

The General Assembly concluded with a vote of thanks to the Chair, with members expressing appreciation for the collective efforts toward strengthening and promoting Gilli-Danda at the national and international level.