Lucknow: 49th Shanti Swaroop Bhatnagar Memorial Tournament (Outdoor Zonal) was inaugurated at CSIR-Indian Toxicology Research Institute (CSIR-IITR), Lucknow on 31st January, 2018 at 3.00 PM. Professor Alok Dhawan, Director CSIR-IITR welcomed the guests and players from 10 CSIR labs across the country who will be participating in cricket and volley ball tournaments. He asked the players to participate in the games with sportsman spirit to instill a sense of team work among the employees of CSIR. He said that there is very limited scope for games in CSIR laboratories. However, CSIR laboratories took initiative to promote sports, a universal form of recreation and one of the great expressions of the aspirations of an individual to excel. He also said that it is difficult for a scientist and/or other staff in the CSIR system to be competitive in sports at national/international level and also be competitive in their individual pursuits of science, sports in CSIR started with ‘club sports type’ where individuals play and participate for their physical and mental fitness. Shri R.P. Singh, player, Indian National Cricket Team was the chief guest on this occasion. Shri Singh narrated his story of rise from a novice player from Lucknow to the international arena. He also described some very interesting incidents of his cricket career. He asked the participating teams to play the games with a competitive spirit without worrying about winning or loosing. Professor R P Tripathi, Director, CSIR-CIMAP and Dr S K Barik, Director, CSIR-NBRI also graced the occasion.
The event was followed by a cultural event at CSIR-IITR Lawns. The tournaments will take place in K D Singh Babu stadium and other stadia of the city from February 1 to 4th, 2018.
