Carrom not less exciting than Cricket, Hockey and Football: CM

By Staff
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Google Oneindia News

New Delhi, Dec 2 (UNI) Cricket, Hockey and football may have become the new ''glamour games'' of India thanks to films like 'Lagaan', 'Chak De India' and 'Dandhanadan Goal' turning public focus on them but Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit feels Carrom is no less exciting.

''Cricket, Hockey, Football and boxing have become glamour games thanks to increased media focus on them. In all this, the importance of the game of Carrom, which is no less exciting than them, seems to have been ignored,'' Ms Dikshit said at a function to inaugurate the Delhi state Carrom Championship.

''Our aim should be to take this game to every school, college and institution. Delhi government is ready to make any contribution necessary for the promotion of this game,''Ms Dikshit said at the function, presided over by the chairman of the All India Carrom Federation and Delhi Pradesh Congress chief J P Agarwal.

Stressing on the need to promote the game of carrom in the country, Mr Agarwal said,''the popularity of the players of this game is no less than of the players of other games like cricket, football and hockey. Infact, in the coming years, we plan to hold carrom competitions and championships in schools to popularise it.'' He also advocated the inclusion of the game as a sporting event in the Olympics and the commonwealth games.

On this occasion, the secretary general of the International carrom Federation S K Sharma said a senior National Carrom Champuionship would be soon organised in the city whose winners would be awarded trophies named after the late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

Calling for greater promotion of the sport in India, he said, ''India is a World Champion in Carrom, having won the International world Carrom Championship for the last four consecutive times.

Infact, the fifth International Carrom Championship is scheduled in Fenbruary in France and I am hopeful, we will bring home the trophy the fifth time round.'' UNI

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