Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Opening the state-level competitions of the Khelo MP Youth Games at TT Nagar Stadium on Tuesday, chief minister Mohan Yadav urged everyone present, including players, guests and officials, to inaugurate the event through the light of mobile phones by standing at their places.
The CM said that he would not deliver a long speech, as he knew that the audience had come to to listen to Kailash Kher. “Aaj mai lamba bhashan dene nahi aaya hun. Mai janta hun aap Kailash Kher ko sunane aaye hain. Aap sab mukhya atithi hai , esliye aapsap apne sthan per khade ho mobile ki light se es event ko inagurate karein ....’, he said.
The ceremony featured a special performance by spiritual singer Kailash Kher and performances by India’s Got Talent fame dance troupe. A dance-drama based on the history of sports and a grand fireworks display were the main attractions of the programme.
Around 5,000 players from 10 divisions gathered at the stadium to take part in the state-level competitions of Khelo MP Youth Games. The teams from the 10 divisions staged a march-past before the chief minister and other dignitaries.
The contests will be in Bhopal, Indore, Ujjain, Jabalpur, Rewa, Shivpuri, Gwalior, Sagar and Narmadapuram. Athletics, fencing, men’s cricket, kayaking-canoeing, rowing, swimming, shooting, men’s hockey, boxing, throwball, volleyball and kabaddi events will be held in Bhopal.
Basketball, weightlifting, table tennis and tennis will be held in Indore, women’s cricket in Shivpuri, women’s hockey, pittu and badminton in Gwalior, Mallakhamb, yoga, tug-of-war and wrestling in Ujjain, Kho-Kho and archery in Jabalpur, football in Rewa, taekwondo and chess in Narmadapuram and judo in Sagar. The competitions in 28 sports will continue till January 31.
Sports, music never given as much importance as academics
Sports and music were never given as much importance as academics from the beginning, says spiritual singer and Padma Shri recipient Kailash Kher.
“I think sports and music are also necessary. Sports help us to remain healthy. Nowadays, the government and society are waking up to this fact and Khelo India is an example of this, ” he said. And he added, “Sangeet sirf gaana hi jaroori nahi hai, sunane ki bhi tameez honi chahiye.”.
Kher was in the city on Tuesday to perform for inaugural function of state-level competitions of Khelo MP Youth Games. About the impact of AI in music, he said, “Music is soul and it can’t be replaced by any technology including Artificial Intelligence.”
Earlier, spiritual and devotional music was not very popular in India. “In last 10 years, the trend has changed and young people are liking spiritual music. Initially, people used to laugh at my style. Today, my spiritual music is being appreciated all over the world,” Kher said.
