UP Minister of Tourism and Culture and Minister In-charge of the district Jaiveer Singh said that sports create the spirit of competition in people’s lives. He was addressing the concluding function of Sansad Khel Pratiyogita Kashi-2023 (October 16 to November 8) at Ambedkar Sports Stadium in Bada Lalpur here on Wednesday. He wished the players a bright future and set examples in their respective disciplines.
He said that the reins of the all-round development of the country are in the hands of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “The country is progressing in every field. His (the PM’s) wish is that the youth of the country should progress in every field and the youth, boys and girls and women of the country and the countrymen are progressing and developing in various fields,” he said, adding that if one wants to remain healthy in life, he/she will have to take up sports.
He further said that India was the tenth economy of the world earlier but during the tenure of the Prime Minister for 9.5 years, the country has become the fifth economy of the world and by 2030, India will become the third economy of the world. He said that India was a Vishwa Guru (world leader) once and the PM has dreamed of making India a world leader again and by 2047, India will lead the world by becoming a global leader.
He said that by presiding over the G-20 programme and successfully organising the same of those powerful nations which have a monopoly on 80 per cent of the world’s economy, it proved that India can become a global leader. He said that children and youth are the future of the country and called upon them to pledge to contribute towards the country’s progress towards making India a global leader. He said that there is no shortage of natural and other resources in the country.
UP Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Stamp and Court Registration Fees Ravindra Jaiswal, while addressing the gathering, said that sports are important for mental, physical and social development. “Sports provide an opportunity to keep us healthy, develop brain abilities, practice strategy, and teamwork apart from enhancing the quality of our life and giving us the ability to think positively, struggle, and win,” he said, adding that sports are an essential part of our life. “Sports play an important role in developing a healthy body and mind. There are many types of sports, which help in our physical as well as mental development. Many times there is a situation of stress during continuous studies. In such a situation, sports are a better medium to relieve this stress,” he said.
He emphasised that in our country, earlier sports were not given as much priority as education was given but under the leadership of the PM Narendra Modi, special importance is being given to sports and players in the country. That's why the Prime Minister says, ‘Whoever plays, will blossom’. Just as education is important for proper development of the mind, similarly sports are important for physical development, he added.
District Magistrate (DM) S Rajalingam said that this year 276,000 people had registered online for this sports competition, out of which more than 2 lakh participants in various sports. “The spirit of the game was such that even a 103 year-old woman ran on the track,” he said. On the occasion, Minister Jaiveer Singh also distributed awards. He awarded gold medal to four-year-old Gurmehar Chawla of Sunbeam Annapurna and silver medal to Shia Singh Rajput and other players in the Wushu game.
Before this, the chief guest started the race competition for boys and girls by playing the clamp. After that, he took the salute of the march past and saw the yogasanas done in various postures by the boys and girls. Zila Panchayat Chairperson Poonam Maurya, Mayor Ashok Tiwari, MLC Ashwani Tyagi, MLC/ District BJP President Hansraj Vishwakarma, City BJP Chief Vidyasagar Rai, ex-MLA Surendra Narayan Singh, Chief Development Officer (CDO) Himanshu Nagpal apart from Basic Shiksha Adhikar, Regional Sports Officer and many other senior officers were present on the occasion.