PESHAWAR
Under the auspices of Directorate of Sports Integrated Districts, Major Games will start from Tuesday (February 22) wherein more than 1500 athletes are going to participate from all across tribal areas.
This was stated by Director Sports Merged Area Pir Abdullah Shah while talking to media men here on Sunday. He said all preparations have been completed for this. The teams will arrive in Peshawar on Monday before the opening ceremony on Tuesday (February 22).
Pir Abdullah Shah said that the closing ceremony would be held at Qayyum Sports Complex Arena February 27 in the morning. Director General Sports Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Khalid Khan will distribute prizes among the players.
He said that arrangements for the games have been completed. Players will participate in football, volleyball, kabaddi, hockey, basketball and athletics. Football will be played at Tahmas Khan Football Stadium Peshawar, Hockey at newly laid Astro-Turf at Islamia College University, Basketball and Athletics will be held at Peshawar Sports Complex. The distribution of the full kits and uniform among the players has been started and it would be completed by Monday evening.
He said, players from Waziristan, Kurram, Sub-Division Tank, Sub-Division Peshawar, Sub-Division Kohat, Sub-Division Dera Ismail Khan, Sub-Division Bannu, Sub-Division Lakki will participate. Director Sports Pir Abdullah Shah said that the Merged District Games will be organized in befitting manners and the players coming from other districts all across tribal areas.
He said it is the second phase of Games wherein more than 15000 athletes are taking part in five different Games. About the first phase of the Games, he said, a total of 3631 players participated in a total 17 Games.
In the first phase, athletics, volleyball, basketball, badminton, boxing, baseball, bodybuilding, cricket, football, table tennis, gymnastics, hockey, judo, kabaddi, taekwondo, wushu and weightlifting competitions were held.
He further said that Sports Complexes in Kurram, Khyber, Bajaur, Mohmand and Waziristan have been upgraded with huge sums of money. He said the government has allocated Rs, 279 million for Bajaur, Rs. 70 million for Mohmand, Rs.289 million for Khyber, Rs. 335 million for Orakzai, Rs. 177 million for South Waziristan, Rs.595 million for Kurram, Rs. 253 million for North Waziristan. He said construction work on the new complexes have also been continued.
He appreciated Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Mahmood Khan for taking keen interests in not only up-grading the existing playing facilities all across tribal areas but also giving approval of new complexes.
He said in the current fiscal year, the Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Mahmood Khan also announced Rs. 1000 million for the establishing of playground facilities at the Union Council and Tehsil levels, Similarly, grounds in sub-divisions Kohat, Peshawar, Bannu, Tank and Dera Ismail Khan will be constructed with a total cost of Rs. 2204 million.
