Cultural events mark beginning of National School Games
The 68th edition of the National School Games kicked off with a cultural programme at Guru Nanak Stadium on Wednesday. The event was marked by performances from students of various schools in the district.
Organised by the Punjab Department of School Education under the aegis of the School Games Federation of India and in collaboration with the Punjab Directorate of Sports, the games are being supported by the district administration. Over 3,000 participants, including players and officials from over two dozen states, three Union Territories and nine organisations, have gathered here to compete in four sports — handball, netball, judo and karate. These events are taking place at three key venues — the multipurpose indoor hall opposite Guru Nanak Stadium, BCM Arya Model School, Shastri Nagar and Government Senior Secondary Smart School, Punjab Agricultural University.
The games were declared open by Deputy Commissioner Jitendra Jorwal.
Addressing the participants, Jorwal wished them a comfortable stay and an enjoyable experience throughout the week-long event. He urged the athletes to compete with sportsmanship and to bring pride to themselves, their families and their respective states.
Dimple Madaan, DEO (Secondary), led the official team in welcoming the chief guest, while Mankaranjot Singh, a national-level netball player, took the oath on behalf of the participants, pledging to uphold the true spirit of sportsmanship. The torch relay, carried by athletes including Jashandeep, Prabhnoor, Arshia, Ishaan, Puja, Paras Chadha, Sanju, Arshpreet Kaur, Nakul Arora, Divansh and Maya, added excitement to the ceremony.
The opening ceremony was a display of cultural energy, with performances of Gidha and Bhangra by students from Ramgarhia School (Miller Ganj), Government School (Cemetery Road), Government Multipurpose School, and others. These traditional Punjabi folk dances filled the stadium with colour and vibrancy, setting the tone for the competitive events ahead. The band display by students from Government Schools of Eminence, Baddowal, Dakha and Jawahar Camp enhanced the atmosphere.
The event was compered by Tinu, a lecturer in English at Government Senior Secondary School, Tahli Sahib. The opening ceremony not only showcased the cultural richness of Punjab but also ignited the excitement for the competitions that were to follow.
On day one of the competition, there were some exciting matches in handball and netball. In the boys’ handball category, Punjab defeated the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) 43-10, while Haryana triumphed over Chhattisgarh with a dominant 50-18 win. In the girls’ handball category, Haryana overwhelmed Vidya Bharti 38-4 and Bihar outperformed CISCE 19-6.
In netball, the boys’ section saw Chhattisgarh edge out Jharkhand 26-18 and Chandigarh beat Delhi 21-13. In the girls’ group, the Indian Public Schools’ Conference (IPSC) thrashed Vidya Bharti 16-0, while Telangana defeated Tamil Nadu 21-5.
The event was marred by some organisational issues as the participants were left waiting for over three hours at the stadium. The opening ceremony was scheduled for 11.30 am and the participants were brought to the venue as early as 9 am and performers at 6.30 am. The chief guest, Jitendra Jorwal, Deputy Commissioner, Ludhiana, arrived at past 12.15 noon.
The absence of essential amenities like water for participants during the prolonged wait underscored the need for better planning and execution.
Players from southern states, accustomed to hot weather, were indeed enjoying the sunny conditions. “Often we face challenges adjusting to different weather conditions during tournaments but the sunny weather provided ideal conditions for outdoor games,” said athletes from Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Telengana.
