President Meets Children Participating in Peace and Solidarity Cricket Matches in New Delhi

The President of India, Smt. Pratibha Devisingh Patil met at Rashtrapati Bhavan today, school children from Kupwara, Srinagar and Delhi, who participated in Peace Cricket Matches in New Delhi over the past 2 days.

The children's participation in these matches was organized by the Guild for Service, which had earlier organized such matches in Jammu & Kashmir. The idea for organizing these matches was to channelize the energies of the youth in the State, into constructive activities such as sports.

The Guild therefore adopted the idea of organizing a Peace Cricket Match in the State in May this year. Students from schools in Delhi went to Jammu and Kashmir to play against a team of school students there. At the time, the President of India had sent her best wishes and had said that the matches could be an effective tool in spreading the message of friendship, harmony, companionship and would also encourage the cause of national integration. The President also supported the initiative with a contribution of Rs 3,50,000 for organizing these matches.

While interacting with the children today, the President said she was happy that they had participated in a sports activity, which is a good platform for the youth. The President said the youth of the nation are our future and appreciated the efforts of the Guild for Service.

This release issued at 1800 hrs.