Parliamentarians under the Rajya Sabha Chairman XI and Lok Sabha Speaker XI played a friendly cricket match at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium on Sunday.
BJP MP Anurag Thakur captained the Lok Sabha Speaker XI, while Union Minister Kiren Rijiju led the Rajya Sabha Chairman XI. The friendly match was named the “TB Mukt Bharat Awareness Cricket Match.”
Speaking to ANI, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju said, “Several of our MP colleagues have come here. With the mantra of fitness, this event was scheduled to energize people through sports. I believe everyone will play with enthusiasm. Our mantra is ‘TB-Free India’ and the ‘Fit India Movement.’”
“Without fitness, you cannot serve the country. You must be fit both mentally and physically,” he added.
“PM Modi has set the goal of making India TB-free by 2025, while the global goal is 2030. Since 2015, there has been a 38% drop in TB-related deaths in India, and an 18% reduction in new cases. This number is around 8% globally. This means India is performing better than the rest of the world”,.BJP MP Anurag Thakur said while speaking to reporters.
“Despite being the most populous country, there is treatment available. The government provides free medicines and financial support of Rs 1000 for the treatment. Cases are also tracked”.
AAP MP Raghav Chadha praised the initiative, saying, “This is a great initiative. The match is being played for a good cause. I believe the awareness of this cause will spread to every corner of the country through this match.”
“Additionally, while elections end, the animosity in the political arena between leaders continues even after that. I think that through such teamwork initiatives, animosity will be diminished, and we will work as a team for Bharat Mata to take the country forward,” Chadha said while speaking to ANI.
BJP MP Rajiv Pratap Rudy felt that the MPs’ effort towards a TB-free India was unique.
“This is a unique effort by MPs towards a TB-free India. The captain of our team is Anurag Thakur, who had been the Sports Minister. This is another side of MPs. Cricket is the most popular sport in the world,” he said.
BJP MP Manoj Tiwari said that through this friendly match, they aim to raise awareness about TB and told reporters, “We want to give a message that we, as MPs, will still run on the field, play this match, and try to create awareness about TB. TB can be defeated with a little awareness. Who wins today’s match is a different matter, but we must defeat TB and make the country win.”
Union Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu expressed his happiness, saying, “I am very happy to participate, especially with all the MPs today. I would like to congratulate the organizers for putting together a great event. The PM has committed to defeating TB by 2025, and a series of events have been organized based on this. Today, we are taking another step forward to create more awareness in the country and unite everyone in the fight against TB.”
Former India captain and Congress leader Mohammad Azharuddin remarked, “It is a joy to meet everyone like this and for MPs to get an outing like this. The country should indeed be TB-free. It should be eradicated as soon as possible. I am happy to be participating today.”
BJP MP Ravi Kishan gave his take on the “historic match” while speaking to ANI, saying, “This will be a historic match. The youth must be awakened and freed from drugs and TB. We will fulfill PM Modi’s dreams when we create awareness about TB among our children.”
The government’s commitment to “End TB by 2025” was first articulated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the “End TB Summit” held in New Delhi in March 2018 and was reaffirmed at the “One World TB Summit” in Varanasi on World TB Day 2023, as per an official release.
At this summit, the Prime Minister emphasized the need for a decisive and revitalized response to TB.
India is a signatory to the Gandhinagar Declaration, a joint declaration by the Health Ministers and WHO South-East Asian Regional Office (SEARO), which was signed at the high-level ministerial meeting on “Sustain, Accelerate, and Innovate to End TB” in the South-East Asia Region by 2030 in August 2023.
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