Top stars for Tiranga Run at Vijayawada on Feb 3

Hyderabad, Jan 16 (UNI) Over one lakh participants, including top athletes, are expected to participate in the Tiranga Run, to be held in Vijayawada on February 3.

Unveiling the logo for the Tiranga run at Andhra Pradesh Olympics Bhavan here today, Coal and Minorities Welfare Minister Mohammed Shabbir Ali rpt Coal and Minorities Welfare Minister Mohammed Shabbir Ali hoped to create awareness about the National Flag.

''Everyone knows the writer of the national anthem, but it is sad that many people do not know about the creator of our national flag.

Now, the time has arrived to remember Pingali Venkayya,'' he said.

Mr Ali said he along with Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy would request Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee to unveil a statue of Mr Venkayya.

Vijayawada Lok Sabha member and Organising Committee Chairman Lagadapati Rajagopal hoped that the event would trigger a series of events to create awareness among the people about the creator of the tricolour. He felt proud of the fact that the national flag creator was a native of Krishna district, under which Vijayawada Lok Sabha constituency falls.

He said the Lok Sabha Speaker and Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunshi were expected to take part in the ten-km rally. Several top sportspersons like Milkha Singh, PT Usha, Rajyavardhan Rathod, Ashwini Nachappa, Pullela Gopichand, Chetan Anand and Koneru Humpy have agreed to take part in the run. He also hoped Olympic medallist Karnam Malleswari would grace the occasion.

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