New Delhi, Jun 23 (PTI) The Ultimate Kho Kho League (UKK) on Thursday received a shot in the arm with the Odisha government deciding to own a franchise in the soon-to-be-launched Ultimate Kho Kho League (UKK).

It will be the second direct sports venture for the Naveen Patnaik government as it also jointly owned Kalinga Lancers, a franchise in the now-defunct Hockey India League.

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The team, owned by the Odisha Sports Development and Promotion Company (OSDPC), will be the fifth side in the upcoming league.

The Odisha government's announcement to own a team in the tournament comes days after the state bagged silver medals in both boys and girls categories in Kho Kho during the recently-concluded Khelo India Youth Games.

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"Kho Kho is very popular in many parts of Odisha. In the recent Khelo India Youth Games, our boys and girls played well and won the silver medals. Since it's a traditional game, we have huge scope to develop it further in the state. Therefore, we have decided to participate in the Kho Kho league," said Tusharkanti Behera, Odisha's Sports and Youth Services Minister, in a release.

The IPL-style tournament of Kho Kho, which is one of India's most popular home-grown sports, is also expected to feature athletes from across the world.

There are currently four franchises in the league and the teams represent Chennai, Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Telagana. PTI SG

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)