Minister for PHE, Irrigation & Flood Control Sham Lal Choudhary said that there is a need to encourage youth to take part in sports activities to keep them away from social evils like drug addiction, which is slowly eating up our society from within.The Minister was speaking after kick-starting a football match between teams of BSF Paloura & Shine Param Football Club during ongoing 1st Pandit Prem Nath Dogra Memorial Football Gold Cup Tournament at Mini Stadium Parade, here today. The tournament is being organized by State Sports Club in collaboration with JK Bank and Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC) at Mini Stadium Parade Jammu from December 1 to December 11, 2016.
MLA Jammu Rajesh Gupta, MLA Akhnoor Rajeev Sharma, MLA Kathua Rajiv Jasrotia, MLA Samba Dr D K Manyal, MLA Chenani Dina Nath Bhagat and members of the organizing committee were present on the occasion. The Minister said that the state government has taken various steps towards upgrading the sports scenario in the state, besides providing every help to the budding players who represent the state at various national and international levels.He further said that involvement of youth in sports activities help in inculcating sense of discipline and sportsman spirit, which are prerequisites for becoming a leader and better human being.The Minister said these kinds of tournaments provide a platform to the young players to display their talent and learn new skills from the best in the business. BSF Paloura won the match by 3-1 decided on the basis of penalty kicks.