09 March 2004	Tuesday	17 Muharram 1425

KARACHI, March 8: The inauguration of the secretariat and unveiling of the "mascot" of the City Games scheduled to be staged in May was held at Civic Centre on Monday.

City District Government Karachi (CDGK) plans to include 32 disciplines in the 15-day Games which will involve 18 Towns of the city. The mascot of the Games was, however, not a fluffy animal which all the sporting events usually do have. Instead, it was a round-shaped steel shield showing four human figures in different colours.

While the banner on the stage during the ceremony had pictures of former greats like hockey star Hanif Khan, and cricket captains Javed Miandad and Wasim Akram, surprisingly, foreign athletes and a footballer were shown in action.

Similarly, at the secretariat, apart from few pictures of Pakistani players, posters of American NBA stars and foreign athletes were pasted all over. Officials say traditional games like malakhara and donkey cart race will also be part of the Games.

Besides inter-town competitions, inter-department contests will also be organized. The inaugural ceremony of the Games, having motto 'Peace and Unity', would be held at National Stadium.