LAHORE: After a lapse of 29 years, the Pakistan Customs has appointed 16 hockey players to revive its departmental team, which holds a rich history in domestic competitions for decades.

Eight players among the new appointees at Customs featured in the recently-held Junior Asia Cup in Oman where Pakistan finished second after narrowly losing the final to India 2-1.

Mukkaram Jan Ansari, a member of Customs, said initially the players were offered contracts, adding their services could be regularised if they made achievements on the field.

Talking to reporters before the start of an exhibition match between Customs and the Dar Hockey Academy here at the National Hockey Stadium on Saturday, Mukarram said the Pakistan Customs enjoyed a glorious past in hockey. “[Therefore], it has been decided to revive the national game at Customs.”

It may be mentioned here that Customs has the distinction of producing many hockey legends for Pakistan including Islahuddin Siddiqui, Hasan Sardar, Hanif Khan, Abdul Rashid, Farhat Khan, Tauqir Dar and many others.

When asked if other sports would also be revived at his organisation, Mukarram said that Pakistan’s prominent weightlifter Nooh Dastgir Butt, who earned gold medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, had been given an honorary post of assistant collector.

“The revival [of sports] at Customs has started for which a comprehensive policy has been adopted, and other disciplines will also be patronised,” he stated.

Published in Dawn, June 18th, 2023