PESHAWAR: The 33rd National Games torch arrived in its host city Peshawar on Sunday after a nation-wide travel of about two weeks.

The National Games torch relay started from Karachi on October 6, and travelled through Quetta, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Gilgit-Baltistan, Naran and Attock before reaching Peshawar Sports Complex after a function at Qila Bala Hisar.

Squash player Farhan Mehboob received the torch in a function held here and handed it over to the director general sports Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Asfandyar Khattak. Former squash champion Qamar Zaman, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Olympic Association president Syed Aqil Shah and many other senor players, officials of the sports department were present on the occasion.

The National Games are set to be held in Peshawar from November 9-14, having been delayed from its earluer dates of October 26-November 1 due to a high risk of worsening law and order situation in Peshawar with some of the opposition parties led by Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam, set for an ‘azadi march’ against the government from October 27.

The provincial senior minister for sports Atif Khan told media persons on Sunday that the provincial government had allocated Rs180 millions for the Games which would be held in a very befitting manner.

Published in Dawn, October 21st, 2019