PM Modi talks with BCCI president Sourav Ganguly
Virat Kohli, Sachin Tendulkar also joins the discussion with PM Modi
This is the 1st time the PM Modi is meeting with the head of a sports body in the country since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus. Sourav Ganguly hosted the video conference from his Kolkata residence. This included 40 elite sportspersons of the country including Indian captain Virat Kohli, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and Mary Kom on the ongoing situation in the country due to the coronavirus pandemic. This is also the first time that the PM has interacted with sports personalities since the 21-day lockdown was enforced on March 24 to contain the spread of the virus.
PM Modi praised the sportspersons for their “stellar performances on the field,” and told them that they now have an important role to play in boosting the morale of the nation. They have to spread the message of social distancing along with asking people to continuously follow advisories given during the lockdown.
The Prime Minister also asked them to include the following five points in their message:
- Sankalp to fight the pandemic,
- Sanyam to follow social distancing,
- Sakaratmakta to maintain positivity,
- Samman to respect the frontline soldiers in this battle including the medical fraternity, the police personnel and
- Sahyog at a personal level as well as at the national level through contribution to PM-CARES fund.
The sportspersons praised PM Modi’s leadership in this challenging time. They also thanked him for ensuring that the frontline healthcare workers and police personnel involved in this battle get the respect they truly deserve for their selfless service.
Prime Minister said that Covid 19 is an adversary of the entire humanity and the gravity of the situation can be ascertained from the fact that for the first time since World War II, the Olympics has been postponed. Several other prominent international sporting events like Wimbledon and domestic sporting events like the Indian Premier League for cricket have been shifted as well due to the challenges created by the pandemic.
