Amid soaring balloons and bursting of crackers, the Jio 30th National Junior Athletic Championship opened at the Indira Gandhi Municipal Corporation stadium here on Wednesday.
Inaugurating the event, Assembly Speaker Kodela Siva Prasad Rao said the new State would not only see sports infrastructure of international standards coming up but also facilities for athletes to train in a more scientific manner. “Rapid development is all set to dawn on Andhra Pradesh, and Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu is making hectic efforts towards achieving it,” he added.
Mr. Rao felt only a meagre amount was allotted to sports in the Union Budget and emphasised the need to improve the standards of athletes. “Small countries like Kazakhstan and Japan are doing well in sports. We need to a take a re-look into our policies,” he said. Minister for Major Irrigation Devineni Uma Maheswara Rao said by hosting the National Games, Andhra Pradesh would get the best of playfields and stadiums. “Efforts are on to get the next edition,” he added.
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MLA Bonda Uma Maheswara Rao said the IGMC stadium would soon be refurbished to meet international standards. “It is imperative that the IGMC stadium is developed into one of the best stadiums in the new State. The stadium should match he image of the new capital city,” he felt.
Reliance Jio representative Ramana said the group was always at the forefront of sponsoring sports meets.
All participating teams took part in a colourful march-past. Member of Parliament (Narasaraopet) Rayapati Sambasiva Rao, Government Chief Whip Nannapaneni Rajakumari, Zilla Parishad chairperson Gadde Anuradha, District Collector Raghunanda Rao, Athletic Federation of India president Adille Sumariwalla, AFI secretary C.K. Valson and District Sports Development Officer P. Ramakrishna and Krishna District Olympic Association secretary K.P. Rao were present.
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