Prime Minister Tarique Rahman will inaugurate the second edition of the ‘Notun Kuri Sports’ programme simultaneously in 503 upazilas across the country from Khulna District Stadium on Thursday (November 5).
A total of 16,23,218 participants have already registered online to take part in the second edition of the programme.
State Minister for Youth and Sports Md Aminul Haque disclosed the information at a press conference held at the National Sports Council today (Tuesday).
He said the number of registrations has increased several times compared to the inaugural edition, which recorded only 1,68,000 participants.
Of the registered participants, teams will be formed in 4,599 unions across the country. Around 14 lakh young athletes are expected to take part in the programme through these teams. The State Minister expressed hope that the final round would be completed in May or June next year.
According to the registration data, 9,44,083 boys, representing 58.2 percent of the total participants, have registered for the second edition.
The number of girls stands at 6,79,135, accounting for 41.8 percent.
Football has attracted the highest number of registrations, with 9,18,620 participants, representing around 36 percent of the total. Athletics comes next with 3,99,218 registrations.
The other disciplines include cricket (3,29,912), badminton (2,55,523), kabaddi (1,90,947), chess (1,71,229), swimming (1,59,291), volleyball (74,829), martial arts (31,951) and table tennis (24,807).
Table tennis recorded the highest female participation rate at 60.3 percent, while cricket had the lowest at 21.9 percent.
The Chattogram division recorded the highest number of registrations, with 2,36,412 boys and girls signing up. Among the districts, Chattogram topped the list with 1,81,132 registrations.
Highlighting the participation of girls in the programme, Aminul said the initiative would encourage more families to send their daughters to sports.
He expressed hope that families would recognise the potential of their daughters and support them in pursuing sports, adding that young female athletes could also contribute to taking Bangladesh forward.
The State Minister said the main objective of Notun Kuri Sports is to identify talented athletes from grassroots level across the country.
Forty outstanding athletes from the inaugural edition, including 28 girls and 12 boys, have been selected for long-term development and advanced training. They will be enrolled at the Bangladesh Krira Shikkha Protishtan (BKSP) in January next year, with the government bearing the costs of their education and training.
“We do not want to lose these talented athletes. Rather, the government will take responsibility for developing them into established players and ensuring their education,” he said.
Aminul expressed optimism that the ‘Notun Kuri’ initiative would bring fundamental changes to the country’s sports arena and contribute to social transformation through sports.
He said the current generation needed to be encouraged to participate in sports to bring positive changes to the existing social system, adding that sports could help build a healthy nation and a drug-free society.
Considering the interests of young participants, two new disciplines – table tennis and volleyball – have been added to the second edition. The previous edition featured football, cricket, kabaddi, swimming, athletics, chess, badminton and martial arts.
Cox’s Bazar Life Desk/BSS
