Imphal, January 01: Inaugural function of the two sport event 52nd National School Games Meet was held at Khuman Lampak Main Stadium today with the Chief Secretary Jarnail Singh as the chief guest.

March past contingents from Chandigarh, Assam, Chattisgarh, Delhi, Goa, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Orissa, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttaranchal, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and host Manipur took part in the opening ceremony of the sports meet that would feature competition in football for girls under-19 and handball for boys and girls in the under-17 age group.

Appreciating participation of the school teams from various part of the country, Jarnail Singh in his inaugural address also detailed the gathering on excellence of Manipuri sportspersons and pleasant weather conditions.

Acknowledging that school teams from other States might have problem of acclimatisation to the prevalent weather conditions, the chief guest nevertheless wished that determination and grit of the young players would be able to overcome any inconveniences.

Presenting the presidential address, Commissioner of Youth Affairs and Sports Department Ch Birendra urged the youngsters to bear with any inconveniences they come across and strive to excel in their respective competition.

Later, the chief guest honoured position holders of the march part wherein contingent of Uttar Pradesh topped followed by Haryana and Goa in second and third place respectively.

The School Games being organised by Youth Affairs and Sports Department, Govt of Manipur will continue till January 15.The sports event began with the girls under-19 football wherein host Manipur defeated Haryana 2-0, Orissa trounced Uttaranchal 6-0, Goa edged past Tripura 2-1 and Bihar outplayed Chattisgarh 6-0.Manipur also began its campaign for the handball crown on a winning note with a 27-11 victory against JNV-Delhi, while Delhi defeated Karnataka 22-6, Haryana drubbed Madhya Pradesh 22-2 and Assam pipped Kerala 18-12.In boys handball competition, Delhi overcame UP 16-15, Maharashtra defeated Tamil Nadu 28-10 and Punjab overwhelmed Assam 22-9.Even though the opening ceremony of the School Games, being organised for the first time by the YAS Department, passed off without any major hiccup discontentment simmered on the accommodation provided to the participants.

Complaining on complacent arrangement, Haryana's manager Rajpal revealed to some media persons that non-provision of drinking water, despicable condition of toilets and absence of water in the bathroom are posing problems for the student sportspersons.

With Room No 23 of the Khuman Lampak Hockey Stadium allotted for the Haryana contingent, the manager expressed that packing the small room with 24 players and officials in addition to asking for utilising the same enclosure for cooking/eating purposes vividly illustrates lack of coordination among officials concerned of the host State.

Contending that inspite of intimation to the organisers the officials had been shifting blame on one another, Rajpal insisted that in case no prompt measure is initiate to address the situation Haryana contingent would be compelled to abandon the Games without further participation.

He also drew the attention of the organisers on absence of reception officials or display board at Dimapur railway station as was earlier assured.

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