Indian athletes too will get to exhibit their prowess in the Punjab Youth Festival from March 2.
A delegation from Indian Punjab comprising 82 athletes and 17 officials will arrive at Wagha on March 1. They will compete against their Pakistani counterparts in several events. Mud wrestling, tug-of-war, arm wrestling (men and women) and kabaddi (men and women) competitions will be held at the Punjab Stadium. The body-building and weightlifting events will be held at Alhamra Cultural Complex and mat-wrestling at the NPSC Gymnasium Hall.
Participants of the upcoming Pak-India Games have been undergoing strenuous preparation at several training camps in the city. Participating teams have been selected through open trials. Those selected have also been provided basic and modern facilities.
Sports Board Punjab (SBP) Director General Usman Anwar said, “The Pakistan-India Games will help strengthen relations between both countries. All arrangements in this regard have been completed and sports lovers from all over the country will be able to cheer for the nation’s favourite sons.”
“Our kabaddi team visited India last year for the Kabaddi World Cup…our players performed really well there. This time, the Indian Punjab team is coming to Pakistan and players of both countries will compete again and promote this traditional game.”
Manager of the Pakistani delegation of the Pak-India Games, Waqas Akbar, said, “Our players have been undergoing rigorous training and I am confident they will give their Indian counterparts a really tough time…our players are really excited about the matches. I hope they do really well and earn laurels for the country.”
Leading colleges and universities of the Punjab have confirmed their attendance at the Punjab Youth Festival’s bid to set the world record for most people singing national anthem on February 24.
Arrangements for this event were reviewed on Wednesday in a meeting chaired by Minister for Sports and Education Rana Mashhood Ahmad Khan at the National Hockey Stadium.
Usman Anwar, MPA Tahia Noon, Higher Education Commission Secretary and officials of the Punjab University, the National University of Modern Languages Lahore, Kinnaird College, the National College of Arts, King Edward Medical University, the FAST University, the DPS, Hajvery University, the Lahore Leads University, the American Lyceum, the Punjab Group of Colleges, Beaconhouse, the University of Management and Technology, the Islamia University Bahawalpur, the University of Gujrat, LACAS, the Salamat International Campus for Advance Studies, the CFE College, COMSATS, the University of Central Punjab, UVAS, Queen Mary College, the University of Lahore, the University of South Asia, the University of Sargodha, The City School, Bahauddin Zakariya University, the Punjab School, SKANS, KIPS, The Educators, the University of Engineering and Technology, Forman Christian College, the Superior University and Qarshi University also attended the meeting.
Mashhood said, “Participants singing the national anthem will remember this as the greatest moment of their lives.” Anwar told the meeting that all arrangements for the activity had been completed. “The participants will be provided transportation and security. Over 175,000 people will participate in this event,” he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 20th, 2014.