DLP Report
PESHAWAR
Adviser to the Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Sports, Taj Muhammad Khan Tarand, has said that sports journalists play a crucial role in promoting a positive image of the province and in highlighting sporting activities at the grassroots level.
He said that without media coverage, sports competitions cannot achieve their intended impact, adding that journalists associated with the sports sector help generate public interest and encourage participation among youth, especially boys and girls.
He was addressing an awards ceremony organised by the KP Sports Writers Association in Peshawar. The event was attended by Director General Sports Tashfeen Haider, AIPS member Amjad Aziz Malik, Additional Deputy Commissioner Muhammad Asghar Sorani, Regional Sports Officer Ahmed Zaman, President of the Sports Writers Association Asim Shiraz, along with journalists and sports department officials.
During the ceremony, awards were distributed among journalists working in print, electronic and digital media. Prominent recipients included Amjad Aziz Malik, Shahabuddin, Imran Yousafzai, Shakeel-ur-Rehman, Sheiba Haider, Nader Khawaja, Ehtesham Bashir, Siraj Arif, Ali Hazrat Bacha, Shahid Afridi, Prince Fahad, Irfan Musazai, Irshad Ali, Zeeshan Kakakhel, Adnan Shahid, Alishba, Abdul Qayyum Afridi, Qadir Khan, Wajid Shahzad, Amjad Khan, Shaukat Hussain, Arshad Dar, Kaleem Qureshi, Usman, Farhan Khalil, Hashim Khan, Muhammad Riaz, Muhammad Humayun, Omar Qayyum, Muhammad Atif, Muhammad Tahir, Ziaul Islam, Abdullah, Shahid Khan, Asim Shiraz, Arsalan Tariq, Muhammad Hayat, Uzair Khan, Arshad, Shiraz, Tahir Mahmood, Rizwan Sheikh and Shah Zameen.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr Tarand said the Sports Department is taking consistent steps to promote sporting activities across the province. He said that in recent years, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Under-21 Games were successfully organised with the participation of around 5,000 male and female athletes from across the province.
He added that opportunities were also provided for male and female players in ice hockey in Chitral, while the merged districts games were held in Khyber for the first time. Girls from merged districts were also given the opportunity to participate in skating events in Malam Jabba.
He further said that inter-school, minority, special persons, and transgender games have also been successfully organised. At present, the National Junior Championship is underway in Peshawar, with athletes from across the country participating.
The adviser said traditional sports events were also organised in Swabi, Haripur, and Mardan, aimed at providing healthy recreation and opportunities for young talent to emerge. He noted that after two decades, the National T20 Cricket Championship was also held in Peshawar, and PSL matches were planned in the city.
However, he added that due to the prevailing regional situation involving Afghanistan, the United States, and Iran, some events were restricted to Lahore and Karachi. He expressed hope that more PSL matches would be held in Peshawar next year, reaffirming the government’s commitment to promoting all sports across the province.
