'It's time to revive the glory of traditional Indian sports in big way': M Venkaiah Naidu

Following the success of the Indian hockey team at the Tokyo Olympics, M Venkaiah Naidu, the vice president of India, urged the state governments to revive traditional Indian sports on Saturday. Naidu claimed that the performance of the Indian hockey team at the Tokyo Olympics 2020 had rekindled interest in sports and it was the perfect opportunity to promote sports like hockey and kabaddi in a huge way. The vice-president has called for state governments and corporate entities to come together and provide encouragement to athletes and give the traditional Indian sports a big push.

Venkaiah Naidu made his thoughts known while releasing a postage stamp in the memory of Social Worker Chaman Lal at Upa-Rashtrapati Nivas. The Indian VP has called for development in sporting infrastructure including artificial turfs, with an emphasis on training and coaching at the grassroots level. Naidu lauded the Central Government for proactively encouraging Indian sports and has asked everyone to feel proud of India’s great tradition and culture. Nadi asserted that the country has inherent talents but need the “right encouragement and support”. India’s men’s hockey team won the bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics 2020, while the women’s team finished fourth having reached the semi-finals for the first time in history.

While paying tribute to Chaman Lal, the vice-president said that the social worker was a great nationalist and hailed him as a visionary thinker. Naidu said that Lal’s life philosophy was stamped by his service, values and creativity. He recalled the important role played by Chaman Lal during the national Emergency and revealed that he diligently helped the family members of jailed persons. Naidu further added that while Lal had a bright career ahead, having received a gold medal in MSc at Punjab University (Lahore) in 1942, he chose the path of service. The Indian vice-president stressed that one needs to find a balance between one’s personal rights and societal duties, and stressed that a lack of social responsibility could lead to disbalance in society.

Tokyo Olympics 2020: List of Indian winners 

• Neeraj Chopra - Javelin Throw - GOLD MEDAL 🥇
• Mirabai Chanu - Weight Lifting (49 kg) - SILVER MEDAL 🥈
• Ravi Kumar Dahiya - Wrestling (57 kg) - SILVER MEDAL🥈
• PV Sindhu - Women's Singles Badminton - BRONZE MEDAL 🥉
• Lovlina Borgohain - Women's Welterweight Boxing - BRONZE MEDAL  🥉
• Indian Hockey Team - Hockey (men's) - BRONZE MEDAL 🥉
• Bajrang Punia - Wrestling (65 kg) - BRONZE MEDAL 🥉

Image credits: PTI/ANI