Vikramaditya urges youth to embrace sports, announces projects in Sirmaur

Pankaj Sharma Nahan, June 2 Public Works and Urban Development Minister Vikramaditya Singh called upon the youth to stay away from drugs and actively participate in sports to build a healthy and clean society. He was addressing the closing ceremony of the two-day Pachhad Utsav organised by the Himalayan Sports and Culture Club in Sarahan. Singh highlighted the government’s commitment to promoting sports infrastructure across the state, including the construction of playgrounds and indoor stadiums. He said Rs 99 crore is being spent on road development projects in the Pachhad constituency during the current financial year. He added that over Rs 35 crore is being spent under the Sarahan PWD Division to upgrade three major roads. The widening and metalling of the Naina Tikkar-Devthal road has been completed at a cost of over Rs 6 crore. Meanwhile, work on the Maryog-Dharayar road is underway with an outlay of Rs 25 crore and Rs 3 crore is being spent on the Dabur-Bagthan road. The minister directed the department to prepare an estimate for the Badu Sahib road project so that budget allocation can be made. He also said tendering for the Science Block of Sarahan College is complete and construction will begin soon. Singh announced that under Phase-4 of the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, nearly 1,500 km of rural roads will be built in Himachal. He appealed to landowners to donate land through gift deeds to expedite construction. Paying tribute to Dr YS Parmar and former CM Virbhadra Singh, the minister announced that a statue of Virbhadra Singh will be installed near Parmar’s at Shimla’s Ridge on June 23. He distributed prizes to winners and participants of the festival, where sports like kabaddi and wrestling were held. He also announced Rs 51,000 from his discretionary fund to support the organising committee.