ISLAMABAD:The youth of Balochistan have demanded of the provincial government to provide sports facilities and arrange cultural festivals in the province to engage them in healthy activities.

Saqib Nasar, a football player from Loralai said football used to be a popular game in Balochistan, but due to lack of football grounds, the game was losing its charm among the people. “The government should build modern football stadiums to facilitate the youth in harnessing their skills,” he added.

He urged the authorities concerned to take such measures to assist the students in getting new opportunities including playing in the national football team.

Professor Abdul Qadoos Kakar said sportsmen were playing a big role in portraying a soft image of the country and the government should organise such sports events at district and divisional levels.

Encouraging sports activities: ‘Why are our playgrounds deserted?’

He urged the government to revise a mechanism to encourage sports activities at school and college levels so that the youth could participate in co-curricular activities.

The government should appoint a Physical Training (PT) instructor to coach sports to the students at school level, he added.

Balach Khan, captain of the provincial netball team, said:  “We are competing at national and international levels without having proper coaching and training.” He said the sports department had not been able to provide us even proper kits, adding “we are getting the sports equipment from various sponsors”.

He also urged the authorities to fix an amount of remuneration for the encouragement of the sportsmen. Balach Khan said, “If we do not engage our youth to indulge in sports activities then the negative elements in the society could destroy them.”

He said the province had the honour to produce international players who brought awards for the country. The government should create more opportunities and provide facilities to the sportsmen, he added.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 16^th, 2019.