New Delhi: National Sports Day was celebrated across the country on Saturday, with fitness runs and sports-related activities organised in Delhi and Patna to promote physical well-being and encourage people to adopt an active lifestyle.
In Northeast Delhi, the police organised the ‘Northeast Delhi Run’ at the Milkha Singh Mini Stadium near the Welcome Police Station. Additional DCP Northeast Delhi Sandeep Lamba flagged off the event.
Speaking to IANS, Lamba said the initiative was part of the police department’s efforts to promote fitness among citizens.
“We organise a Sunday run every week under the Fit India initiative, with programmes held at different police stations. This time, since it was National Sports Day, we organised the run a day in advance,” he said.
In Patna, Bihar Minister Ram Kripal Yadav participated in a fitness programme organised in the Digha area. The event, titled ‘Run for Fitness’ and ‘Fit Digha, Hit Digha’, was organised under the leadership of BJP MLA Sanjeev Chaurasia.
Yadav said the initiative would help spread awareness about the importance of fitness and healthy living among people in the state capital.
“On the occasion of National Sports Day, a ‘Run for Fitness’ and ‘Fit Digha, Hit Digha’ programme has been organised by our respected MLA and my younger brother, Sanjeev Chaurasia. I would like to extend my best wishes and congratulations to him. I am confident that today’s programme will create greater awareness about fitness and health among the people of Patna,” he said.
BJP MLA Sanjeev Chaurasia said the ‘Fit Digha, Hit Digha’ initiative was launched under the Fit India programme to motivate people, particularly youngsters, to focus on their physical health.
BJP MLA Ratnesh Kumar Kushwaha also attended the programme and highlighted the importance of fitness and sports in daily life. He said the event was organised under Chaurasia’s leadership and drew inspiration from the Fit India Movement.
National Sports Day is observed every year on August 29 to commemorate the birth anniversary of legendary Indian hockey player Major Dhyan Chand, who was born in Allahabad, now Prayagraj, in Uttar Pradesh, in 1905.
The observance was officially introduced in 2012 to recognise Dhyan Chand’s immense contribution to Indian hockey and promote greater awareness about the role of sports and physical activity in maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
The day has also been associated with the presentation of several major sporting honours in India. Traditionally, the country’s leading sports awards have been presented by the President at ceremonies held at Rashtrapati Bhavan around National Sports Day.
India’s highest sporting honour, the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award, is also named after the hockey legend. The award was earlier known as the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award before its renaming.
National Sports Day is marked by sports competitions, fitness drives and awareness programmes in schools, colleges and institutions across the country.
The Khelo India programme, launched in its current form during 2017-18, is among the government’s major initiatives aimed at promoting sports participation across different age groups.
In 2019, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Fit India Movement on National Sports Day, further emphasising the importance of fitness and active living.
(IANS)
