New Delhi: The Prime Minister had said in the inaugural ceremony of the 7th Khelo India Youth Games through video conferencing that, during the Khelo India Youth Games, competitions will be organized in many cities of Bihar. From Patna to Rajgir, Gaya to Bhagalpur and Begusarai, in the coming days, more than six thousand young sportspersons with more than six thousand dreams and resolutions will hoist the flag on this sacred land of Bihar. I wish all the players good luck. Sports in India is now making its mark as a culture. And the more the sports culture in India develops, the more India’s soft power will also increase. Khelo India Youth Games has become a big platform in this direction for the youth of the country.

He further said that it is very important for any player to improve his performance, constantly test himself, play as many matches as possible and participate in as many competitions as possible. The NDA government has always given it top priority in its policies. Today there are Khelo India University Games, Khelo India Youth Games, Khelo India Winter Games, Khelo India Para Games. That is, competitions are held continuously throughout the year at various levels, nationwide and national level. This increases the confidence of our players and brings out their talent. Let me give you an example from the world of cricket. Recently we saw the brilliant performance of Bihar’s son Vaibhav Suryavanshi in IPL. Vaibhav has made many tremendous records at such a young age. Apart from Vaibhav’s hard work, playing more and more matches at different levels also played a big role in bringing out his talent. This means that the more a person plays, the more he will flourish. During Khelo India Youth Games, all your players will get an opportunity to understand the intricacies of national level sports, you will learn a lot.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said that it is the dream of every Indian to organize Olympics in India someday. Today India is trying to organize Olympics in our country in 2036. To increase India’s dominance in sports at the international level, the government is identifying and training players at the school level to identify sports talent. From Khelo India to TOPS scheme, a complete ecosystem has been developed for this. Today thousands of sportspersons from across the country including Bihar are taking advantage of it. The government is also focusing on ensuring that our players get the opportunity to play as many new sports as possible. That is why Gatka, Kalaripayattu, Kho-Kho, Mallakhambha and Yogasana have also been included in the Khelo India Youth Games. In recent times, our players have performed very well in many new sports. Indian players are now coming forward in sports like Wushu, Sepak-Takra, Panchak-Silat, Lawn Bowls, Roller Skating. In the 2022 Commonwealth Games, the women’s team caught everyone’s attention by winning a medal in the Loan Bowl.

He said that the government is also focusing on modernizing sports infrastructure in India. The sports budget has increased more than three times in the last decade. This year the sports budget is approximately Rs 4 thousand crores. A large part of this budget is being spent on sports infrastructure. Today, more than one thousand Khelo India centers are running in the country. More than three dozen of these are in our Bihar alone. Bihar is also benefiting from NDA’s double engine. Here Bihar government is expanding many schemes at its level. Khelo India State Center of Excellence has been established in Rajgir. Bihar also has institutions like Bihar Sports University, State Sports Academy. Sports City is being constructed on Patna-Gaya Highway. Sports facilities have been created in the villages of Bihar. Now Khelo India Youth Games will help in strengthening Bihar’s presence on the national sports map.

Narendra Modi further said that, the world of sports and sports economy is not limited to sports only. Today it is also providing new opportunities for employment and self-employment to the youth. These include physiotherapy, data analytics, sports technology, broadcasting, e-sports, management and many such sub-fields. And especially our youth can definitely choose the path of coach, fitness trainer, recruitment agent, event manager, sports lawyer, sports media specialist. This means that the stadium is no longer just a match ground but has become a source of employment for thousands of people. Many possibilities are emerging for the youth in the field of sports and entrepreneurship also. The national sports universities that are being built in the country today, or the new national education policy that has been formulated, in which we have made sports a part of mainstream education, also have the objective of creating good players as well as excellent sports professionals in the country.

PM Modi had said that, we know that sports has great importance in every sphere of life. In sports, we learn team spirit and learn to move forward together. You will have to give your best performance on the playing field and also strengthen your role as a Bharat Shrestha Bharat brand ambassador. I am sure, you will come back with many good memories of Bihar. Players coming from outside Bihar must also taste Litti Rice. You will also like the Makhanas of Bihar.