Director Tourism Kashmir Tasaduq Jeelani Sunday gave away mementoes and certificates to over 100 youth for successfully completing 3-month long swimming course at Water Sports Centre Nigeen.The camp was organized in collaboration with Swim and Survive Society. The department organized swimming coaching camp at Nigeen Water Sports Center in the month of June for non-swimmers which received an overwhelming response from the locals especially children.Scores of the children of different age groups along with their parents attended the morning coaching camp regularly.While appreciating youth for their participation in the camp, the Director said swimming is the most important sports activity and the department would provide every facility for larger participation of the locals in such camps. He said more such camps will be organized at other locations so that a maximum lot can avail the opportunity of learning swimming.He said youth have realized the importance of swimming skills after the floods struck the Valley in 2014.While sharing his experiences of the deluge, he said that those who knew proper swimming were at the forefront of rescue operations.Director Tourism Kashmir revealed that the department would construct an all-weather swimming pool in Srinagar to provide a round-the-year facility for the youth.“In the absence of swimming pools, youth venture into rivers and lakes for swimming without any lifesaving equipment which has proven fatal for them.“We feel very sad to hear of drowning incidents in many parts of the Valley.
But we will continue to train youth in swimming and will explore the possibility of sending some of them outside the state for advance training so that they learn advance rescue skills also which can be used during any eventuality,” said Director Tourism.While assuring that the department would continue coaching classes at Nigeen, Tassadue Jeelani said the water sports centre would be further augmented with the latest equipment and more manpower.He said that the best swimmers who after learning swimming during the camp crossed Nigeen Lake would be suitably awarded and felicitated during the upcoming Kashmir Festival.Besides swimming, the participants were trained to prevent and respond to swimming emergencies in rescue skills, Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) techniques, rescue operations, moving the victim to safety, removing the victim from the water, providing emergency care, etc.President Adventure Tour Operators Association of Kashmir (ATOAOK) Rauf Tramboo, who was also present at the function, appreciated the efforts of the Tourism Department in conducting such camps.Riyaz Wani, Abid Amin Bhat were technical experts who provided training to the students while as other volunteers assisted them in the training.