Divisive forces gave stones to youth; now they carry cricket bats, hockey sticks: Sinha

Closing ceremony of LG’s Rolling Trophy

STATE TIMES NEWS

JAMMU: Observing that the divisive forces and their sympathizers misguided our youth and gave stones in their hands, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Thursday said, now with hockey sticks, cricket bats, tennis and badminton rackets in their hands and dreams in the heart, they have embarked on a new journey of peace and prosperity.
“Youth should think big, act towards more ambitious goals in life and the administration is with them at every step”, said the Lt Governor while congratulating the players and winning team on the concluding day of the LG’s Rolling Trophy, urging them to continue to do their best to bring glory to the sports fraternity.
The Lt Governor said, the LG’s Rolling Trophy is an important initiative of the Mission Youth that aims to strengthen the roots of sports culture. The tournament enabled our players to demonstrate excellence on the field and promoted pride, camaraderie and the spirit of sportsmanship, he added.
“More than 42,000 players competed with the spirit of peace, friendship, equality, and respect. The players with their skill and endurance on the playing field have inspired the young generation, renewed the essential spirit of sports and made this tournament truly memorable,” observed the Lt Governor.
Mission Youth with its various schemes is providing our youth a life of hope, purpose and opportunity. Sports, self employment & other youth oriented programmes being run by the UT Administration have transformed the lives of youth of J&K. As many as 17 schemes of Mission Youth have empowered the young generation to realize their true potential, the Lt Governor added.
In just 10 days of Back to Village and My Town, My Pride, we have created 75,000 new entrepreneurs. In the last three years, 6 lakh youth have started their entrepreneurial journey, he further added.
The Lt Governor reiterated the Government’s commitment to provide modern facilities and world class coaching to the sportspersons.
Under the guidance of the Prime Minister, we have created new infrastructures for the players in far-flung areas. It is being ensured that the youth living in villages get modern facilities and mentoring, said the Lt Governor.
He observed that the key to vibrant sports culture lies in the effective combination of talent hunt, mentoring and suitable platform. Not only we want to feed our sports culture with a steady stream of young talents, but we also want to inculcate sporting excellence and skill in our youth, he added.
Sports build character, infuse values of team spirit and bring diverse communities together. We are resolute to extend all possible support, facilities and resources to the sportspersons to safeguard their future and make their dreams come true, the Lt Governor observed.
This year, 104 projects under JKIDFC and 117 projects under CAPEX have been completed across the UT. More than 60 lakh children and youth participated in sports activities in the last one year. In many disciplines like gymnastics, judo, football, cricket, we have set up academies to identify & nurture the talents, the Lt Governor noted.
On the occasion, the Lt Governor inaugurated the Main Gate at MA Stadium and laid the foundation stone for Artificial Rock Climbing Wall at the premises.
The Lt Governor interacted with the players and handed over trophies and cash prizes to the winning, and other top performing teams and the players who excelled in the tournament.
Jammu emerged as the winner of the LG’s Rolling Trophy (Cricket) and was awarded with the cash prize of Rs One Lakh. The second & third placed teams of the tournament, Anantnag & Ganderbal were awarded with cash prize of Rs 75,000 & Rs 50,000, respectively, while Doda grabbed the fourth spot.
Ankush Sharma declared the Man of the Tournament and was awarded with Rs 50,000 cash prize for his outstanding performance. Rishav won the Man of the Match in the finals.
Mukesh Singh, ADGP Jammu; Sarmad Hafeez, Secretary to the Government, Youth Services & Sports Department; Ramesh Kumar, Divisional Commissioner, Jammu and representatives of various sports organizations, prominent sports personalities and sports-lovers were present on the occasion.