Punjab to be made province of ‘sports and flowers’: CM

[Salman]

Punjab to be made province of ‘sports and flowers’: CM

* Shahbaz inaugurates sports complex

* Says playgrounds being constructed on lands retrieved from qabza groups


LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Shahbaz Sharif said that the Punjab government would continue to strive for speedy completion of public welfare projects aimed at providing quality facilities to the masses irrespective of any criticism against them.

He added that the government was taking concrete steps for promotion of healthy activities across the province.

The youth was now being provided with sports opportunities in order to fill the void that had existed in the sports sector for the last many decades, the CM said. He said that playgrounds for hockey, cricket and other sports of international standards were being constructed by making use of government lands retrieved from qabza groups throughout the province.

He said this while addressing the inaugural ceremony of Muhammad Ali Johar Sports Complex in Johar Town on Sunday. The CM unveiled the plaque of the sports complex. He said that its construction was another milestone in the history of Lahore, adding that quality and healthy recreational sport opportunities would be available to the youth through this sports complex, as a result of which a confident and bold leadership will be prepared for the country’s better future.

Provincial Minister for Auqaf Haji Ehsanundin Qureshi, MNAs, MPAs, Lahore commissioner and DCO, PHA director general, sports lovers and a large number of athletes were also present on the occasion. Emphasising on the importance of sports, Shahbaz said that healthy minds made a healthy nation. He said that sports promoted high values like sportsman spirit and tolerance in people. To infuse these values among the youth of the country, he said, the Punjab government was constructing sports grounds at par with international standards across the province where youngsters would get a chance to test and enhance their sports skills.

He said that the youth, by utilising these sports facilities, would not only be able to win laurels for the country and the nation but would also play an effective role in building a new and healthy Pakistan.

Shahbaz said that the government was working strenuously and speedily to provide best recreational facilities to the masses along with beautifying the province through vegetation and construction of parks. The CM said that Punjab would be made into a province of “sports and flowers”.

Congratulating the district administration and PHA for constructing a sports complex of international standards, he said that the construction of a hockey stadium had also been initiated in Johar Town and an Astro Turf will also be laid in the stadium. Speaking on the occasion, International Cricket Empire Aleem Dar said that the chief minister was creating a new hope and infusing a spirit of progress among the youth by providing modern sports facilities. Owing to such healthy reforms, players would be able to glorify the country’s name at international level.

Meanwhile, the PHA gave a detailed briefing with regards to the existing sports facilities in the complex. Shahbaz also inaugurated the table tennis court and cricket ground in the complex. He attended a table tennis match as a spectator and also played some inaugural shots.