Union Sports Minister leads India's biggest-ever national sports day celebrations

New Delhi, Aug 29 (IANS) The biggest-ever National Sports Day celebrations in India were marked on Friday with an estimated 30 crore citizens across States and Union Territories participating in events to commemorate the 120th birth anniversary of hockey legend Major Dhyan Chand.

Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya, Union Minister for Youth Affairs & Sports and Labour & Employment, led the national programme with a floral tribute at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium before joining over 2,000 participants – including officials of the Sports Ministry, Sports Authority of India (SAI), Indian Olympic Association (IOA), Paralympic Committee of India (PCI), National Sports Federations (NSFs), athletes and coaches – in interactive activities at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.

Nationwide programmes began with a pledge on fitness and wellbeing, resonating with Olympic and Paralympic values. From mass fitness drives in schools to community sports events in villages and cities, the celebrations unfolded as what officials described as a “Jan Andolan of Sports,” encapsulated by the slogan ‘Har Gali, Har Maidaan; Khele Saara Hindustan’.

Chief Ministers, Deputy Chief Ministers, and Members of Parliament joined events across the country. Among them were Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in Lucknow, Karnataka’s Siddaramaiah in Bengaluru, and Arunachal Pradesh’s Pema Khandu in Itanagar. Prominent MPs, including Sarbananda Sonowal, Anurag Singh Thakur, and Bhupender Yadav, also took part.

In New Delhi, Dr. Mandaviya inaugurated the country’s first MONDO Athletics Track at JLN Stadium, completed in four months by SAI’s engineering wing. Paralympic champion Sumit Antil hailed the track as ‘a new vision for excellence’, while Olympic gold medallist Neeraj Chopra called it ‘a milestone moment for Bharat’s sport’. Mandaviya joined para-athletes, Olympians, and officials in a spirited 400m demonstration run on the new track.

Later, a cricket match between Ministers XI and Media XI added a lighter touch to the day. “Sports have been an integral part of our lives and will always be. A rich variety of sports has been mentioned in our history. I thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi for bringing back this spirit through initiatives like Targeted Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS), Khelo India, and Fit India.”

“With the Khelo Bharat Niti and the National Sports Governance Act in place, Bharat is marching ahead towards Viksit Bharat 2047 with the ambition of being among the top five nations at the Olympics. There is no bigger classroom than the sporting arena, and no greater teacher than sports,” he said.

Celebrations were inclusive and diverse, with a 15-day programme in the Andaman & Nicobar Islands culminating in an underwater tribute to Major Dhyan Chand. Meanwhile, the 17th edition of Isha Gramotsavam – Bharat’s largest rural sports festival – brought together 5,000 teams and 50,000 players across seven States.

Messages poured in on social media from athletes such as Sachin Tendulkar, PV Sindhu, Mirabai Chanu, and Neeraj Chopra, alongside Bollywood celebrities including Ayushmann Khurrana and Shilpa Shetty, making National Sports Day a trending topic.

The celebrations will continue over the next two days as part of a three-day Jan Andolan. On August 30, the focus will shift to sports debates and conclaves on the Khelo Bharat Niti 2025 and the National Sports Governance Act, 2025, alongside nationwide competitions in indigenous disciplines such as kho-kho, kabaddi, volleyball, sack race, and tug of war.

The finale on August 31 will feature Fit India Sundays on Cycle – a nationwide drive promoting cycling as a lifestyle practice under the theme ‘Swadeshi Bharat’. In parallel, a National Conclave on Sports Goods Manufacturing will open in Delhi under the banner of Aatmanirbhar Bharat, with similar conclaves planned across States to strengthen domestic sports production and exports.

--IANS

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