‘Khel Mahakumbh way to make India sports power’

LUCKNOW: India will have to take new paths and create new facilities if it has to become a ‘sports power’, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday, hailing the ‘Sansad Khel Mahakumbh’ as the one such step that will help the country have a bright future.
Virtually addressing the closing ceremony of the ‘Sansad Khel Mahakumbh’ organised in Gorakhpur, Modi underlined how his government increased the sports budget by three times since 2014. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and local MP Ravi Kishan were present at the venue of the event.
The PM stressed that the government and the people need to have a “holistic vision” for the sports which remained largely neglected for “generations”.
Recalling the time when sports and games were part of village fairs where such activities were organised in the "akhadas", Modi lamented that these traditions are fading away.
“Then came a time when the PT period in school became just a ‘time-pass’,” he said, in a veiled remark at the previous governments. Modi said that it was during the BJP government that construction of new stadiums and other sports infrastructure was taken up. He also highlighted how the ‘Khelo India’ and ‘Fit India’ have been given a thrust.
PM Modi said that there is a lot of hidden and latent potential in the players of our country, which is eager to come out. The Sansad Khel Mahakumbh plays a significant role in giving a platform to this potential. “The fact that hundreds of BJP MPs are organising the Khel Mahakumbh makes me happy. As a result, a large number of sporting talents are getting a chance. Some of these athletes will compete at the state and national levels. Later on, they will win medals for the country in competitions like the Olympics,” he said.
“There are thousands of youth among you who have come from a small village or a small town. This shows how sports competitions are becoming a new platform to give new opportunities to young players. You people who watch all kinds of talent hunt programs on TV, you also find that there are many children from small towns,” the PM said.
The Prime Minister praised Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for sports development and encouragement, saying he is happy to know that sports facilities are being developed on a large scale in Uttar Pradesh. "Regional stadium is an example of this whereas a mini stadium is also being constructed in Chauri Chaura," he said.
PM Modi said that along with sports like wrestling, kabaddi, hockey, painters, folk singers and dancers, tabla and flute players etc. have also participated in this competition. “This is a very beautiful, commendable and inspiring initiative. The moral responsibility of promoting our Indian folk genres is also on all of us. Earlier, when the Khel Mahakumbh was held in Gorakhpur, about 16,000 to 20,000 players participated in it. This time the number of participants has increased to about 24,000 to 25,000,” the PM said.
Modi also encouraged the players to take to millets, describing them as a source of good nutrition. He said that he had full faith that the youth and players will continue to shine and make the country proud.