Vice-President Naidu inaugurates 10-day extravaganza
BENGALURU: Exhorting the youth of India to make sport a part of their lifestyle, Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu opened the 2nd Khelo India University Games at a colourful ceremony at the Sree Kanteerava indoor stadium here on Sunday.
Naidu said the New Education Policy has put a lot of emphasis on sport and it wants the state governments to reward sportspersons be it in admissions or promotions. Applauding the efforts of the Karnataka government and hosts Jain University, the vice-president asked the participants to make the best use of their chances to be the best.
The near capacity crowd, comprising mostly the KIUG participants, listened with rapt attention when prime minister Narendra Modi came on screen with his televised message. "The Bengaluru city is famous for the enthusiasm of India's youth. In Digital India's Bengaluru, the arrival of Khelo India is by itself important and the assembly of sports stars is a miracle in this world of start-ups. The hosting the KIUG will further increase the energy of the beautiful city and the youngsters will return with fresh energy," Modi said.
'Sport teaches team spirit'
"The first mantra to become successful is team spirit, and sport teaches you team spirit. Sport needs 100 percent dedication. I hope many of you will go on to represent the country. Sport and life both have the feeling, excitement and passion and in both, whoever faces the challenge wins," Modi told hundreds of youngsters in attendance and many thousands who followed the proceedings live.
"The power of sport increases the power of the nation. When you are known in sports, the country gets known. Even among our winners at the Tokyo Olympics, there was more pride in winning medals for the nation. By participating in KIUG, you are preparing a new sportsperson for the country," the PM signed off.
Union sports minister Anurag Singh Thakur said it was the first opportunity for us to assemble after nearly two years. "This is the largest multi-discipline event taking place in Karnataka. I visited the Jain University and met the enthusiastic athletes," he said. Karnataka chief minister Basavaraj Bommai welcomed all the participants in the presence of state governor Thawarchand Gehlot and state sports minister KC Narayana Gowda.
No march past but drummers, mallakhamb vow audience
The long list of speeches was followed by the oath which Olympian swimmer Srihari Nataraj took on behalf of the athletes and Games digital flame was lit by Asian youth boxing champion Vinika and Jain University tennis player Lokitaksha Badrinath. With no march past of the participating Universities, it was over to the drummers from various parts of the country, from Punjabi dhol to Dollu Kunitha to Kerala's chenda to make the atmosphere vibrant. The nearly two-and-a-half-hour ceremony also saw Mangalore University mallakhamb players showcasing their skills to a big applause.
North Maharashtra University shine
With a gold and silver from weightlifting, Kavaitri Bahinabai Chaudhari North Maharashtra University took the lead on top of the medals tally on the opening day. Mahajan Govinda Sunil won gold in the 61kg category after Uday Anil Mahajan had won silver in the 55kg class.
Select results:
Weightlifting: Women: 49kg: 1. Sneha Soren (KIIT, 161kg); 2. Sarita Sunil Savant (Shivaji, 150kg); 3. Shalu (Kurukshetra 149kg). 55kg: 1. Ranmale Sakshi Mahesh (Shivaji 166kg); 2. Pramila Krisani (Berhampur 166kg); 3. B Lakshmi (Mangalore 161kg).
Shooting: Men 10m Air Rifle: Maddineni Mahesh (KL, 16), 2. Paarth Makhija (Delhi, 10); 3. Gajanan Khandagle (Savitribhali Phule University, Pune). Team: 1. Delhi 1875.3 points; 2. Savitribai Pule 1873.1; 3. Gujarat 1869.1.
Volleyball: Men: Group A: MG University bt Mangalore University 3-1. Women: SRM University bt University of Mysore 3-1.
Basketball: Men: Jain bt Mumbai 77-48
Badminton: Women's Team: Jain bt Calicut 3-0
Mallakhamb: Men's Team: 1. Mumbai (123.85); 2. Savitri Phule (123.73); 3. Bundelkhand (116.05)
