Fresh leadership takes control of state handball development plans
Members of the Odisha Handball Association elected Biplab Choudhury as their new president during an annual meeting on September 6, 2026. Representatives gathered at Jhadishwari Club in Puri to form a fresh executive committee, giving them a mandate for a four-year term. Er. Manas Kumar Singh secured the secretary position.
Odisha has recently seen a strong push to elevate regional sports infrastructure, making strong local leadership essential for niche games. To guide this effort, the state association selected Ritwik Adhikari, Suresh Chandra Padhi, Ramesh Prusti, and Parthasarathi Mahapatra as vice-presidents. Ritwik Adhikari chaired the proceedings, while Prashant Kumar Nayak attended as the official state observer. Syed Shamimi Ahmad, treasurer of the Jharkhand unit, represented the Handball Association of India to monitor the process.
Officials spent significant time reviewing past activities and mapping out future plans for athletes. Members agreed on multiple strategies to push handball into more rural districts and strengthen local talent pools from a young age. The newly formed team aims to bring more visibility to regional tournaments across different districts.
New Association Office Bearers
Delegates finalized the complete executive roster alongside the primary leadership positions. Gouri Shankar Mishra officially took the role of joint secretary. Geetanjali Dash will manage finances as treasurer, directly assisted by Sitendranath Das. The committee also inducted six executive members. This group includes Sarada Prasad Das, Prashant Rath, Subhendu Narayan Choudhury, Pratap Kumar Mahanti, Pranaya Kumar Pani, and Bishnu Prasad Pattnaik. Sakaleswar Pattnaik, who serves as vice-president for the Bhubaneswar unit, concluded the gathering with a formal note of gratitude to all voting participants.
