Indian legends to be feted by PM

Sabi Hussain

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, September 25

The opening ceremony of the FIFA U-17 World Cup might have been cancelled, but the Sports Ministry is leaving no stone unturned to make Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the JLN Stadium ahead of India’s tournament opener against the USA on October 6 a headlined event.

To showcase Modi’s love for the game, the Ministry and the All India Football Federation (AIFF) have decided to invite legendary Indian footballers to share the stage with the PM.

These past masters of the game — who have been recipients of the Padma Shri, Arjuna, Dronacharya or Dhyanchand Awards — would be felicitated by Modi with a shawl and a memento after his short speech. All the Arjuna Award winners who have captained India will be felicitated. The shortlist includes Baichung Bhutia, Chuni Goswami and Pradip Kumar Banerjee among others.

“We wanted some alternate for the opening ceremony. By inviting former footballers, the Ministry would serve two purposes. The footballers would be felicitated by the PM, and it would ensure that the PM has someone to share the stage with,” a Ministry official said. The government had earlier planned to hold a lavish opening ceremony at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium on October 5. The ceremony, reportedly planned at Rs 10 crore, had been worked around speeches of Modi and FIFA president Gianni Infantino. However, the plan was later shelved after Infantino pulled out from his India visit for the World Cup’s opening matches. Instead, he would now be arriving to watch the final in Kolkata on October 28.

“The invites to football greats Diego Maradona and Ronaldo stand. They have consented through their managers to attend some matches during the middle part of the tournament,” the official added.