IMPHAL, July 5: The Secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, Anurag Thakur inspected the state of the Manipur Cricket Association at Luwangpokpa Cricket Stadium today.
The BCCI secretary who is also an MP of the BJP, was received at the Imphal Airport by a BJYM team.
Later, accompanied by national general secretaries of the BJP, Saynthan Basu (administration) and Doni Nich (in-charge Manipur) visited Luwangsangbam to meet the official of the MCA. The MCA and BJYM together submitted a memorandum to the visiting dignitary urging him to help establish an international standard Cricket Stadium in Manipur.
Later, Thakur launched a BJYM Manipur mission called `Explore Manipur` to explore the tourism potential of Manipur.
This will be a month long drive to identify tourism spots in Manipur and to assess the tourism potential of Manipur, and put on the map of world tourism, he said while attending a function `Youth for future` at the office of BJP Manipur Pradesh.
Thakur said that very soon a BCCI meeting on the new area drive is going to be held at New Delhi and he assured he would bring up the matter of MCA and various other issues of MCA submitted to him today.
He promised that within a month all problems face by the MCA in popularising cricket will be resolved. He further assured maximum support will be extended to MCA, including construction of cricket infrastructure in Manipur.
Thakur further said that BJP has converted the Congress`™s Look East Policy to Act East Policy, indicating the party`™s intent to engage with this important issue. Funds will be sanctioned for the purpose, and the NDA government under the leadership of Narendra Modi is very serious about this.
Manipur is well known for its talent in sport, Art and Culture and tourism, but the last 13 years of rule by the Congress has suppressed all these potentials he said. However the NDA government will undo all the wrongs and give added emphasis to the development of the NE region of India, he said. Without developing the NE region, India can`™t developed, he added.
He asked to make the state free from insurgency and drugs. He also said the mission launched today is also with this in sight. He said in his next visit to Manipur, he will be a tourist coming along with his friends and family, to enjoy the beauty of the state.
He said he is dismayed to learn that more than eight lakh youth are unemployment in Manipur. He said developing tourism can help ease this problem.
He said prolong rein of the Congress in the state inhibited the development of the state but now with the BJP`™s return to power at the Centre things are poised to change.
He assured that if the BJP government comes to power in Manipur, 24X7 hour power supply, good road connectivity and infrastructure amongst many others will be assured for the people.
The BJP state president Th. Chaoba also spoke at the function and agreed with the central leader that tourism can create jobs for the unemployed youths of the state. Tourism cannot end at Hapta Kangjeibung and needs to reach out to all corners of the state, he added.
He criticised the Congress government in the state for its inability to start construction of National Sport University even after one year of the central government sanctioning it. He also alleged that the present government is taking keen interest only on developing Thoubal.
O Malesh president BJYM Manipur Pradesh, M Asnikumar general secretary administration and national general secretaries Saynthan Basu and Doni Nich were also present at the function.