The Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh symbolically kicked-off the country’s biggest football campaign at the India Gate lawns on Saturday evening.
The Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) and Assam Rifles, under the aegis of All India Police Sports Control Board, will organise Oorja, an under-19 football tournament for boys and girls, featuring about 12500 players competing in 1200 matches across 36 States and Union Territories from May 1 to July 25.
The tournament will be a precursor to the FIFA Under-17 World Cup being hosted in the country for the first time this year, expected to have a world wide audience of about 200 million viewers.
The ceremonial launch had many sports personalities like Kapil Dev, Baichung Bhutia, M.C. Mary Kom, Sushil Kumar, I.M. Vijayan, P. Gopi Chand, Geeta Phogat, and Babita Kumari among others.
Felicitation
On the occasion, 25 eminent sportspersons of the CAPF were felicitated.
The tournament, aimed towards identifying a large talent pool, will be held in three phases and offers more than ₹1 crore in prize.
The main slogan for the tournament is one of Swami Vivekananda’s, “Arise, awake and stop not till the goal is reached”.
Mascot
Gabru, the cub, will be the mascot. The Home Minister hoped that the Under-17 World Cup would serve as a catalyst for creating a mass movement around football in the country.
