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KARACHI: Haleem Adil Sheikh, adviser to Sindh Chief Minister on Sports, said it was his desire to change Pakistan’s face globally by reviving sports culture in the city in general and province in particular.
“It’s vital to promote healthy sporting activities aimed at serving dual purpose — involving the youth to sports and to bring suffocation in the atmosphere to an end,” he told Dawn while outlining salient features of his policies on Thursday.
The adviser, who hails from Nawabshah, succeeded orthopedic surgeon Dr. Mohammad Ali Shah on July 21.
Sheikh, 44, said he opted for sports when the Sindh government offered four portfolios — two ministers and as many advisers — to his party sometime back.
“Under the slogan of ‘Play for Peace’, I want to bring about a positive change in the society through stalwarts of yester-years with whom I have been interacting regularly since coming at the helm of affairs”.
Sheikh, who has done his Master’s in Political Science from the University of Karachi, said he has set short and long term goals which among other things envisaged solving employment problems of talented youth and creating infra structure across the province.
“I’ve initiated a plan to involve multi-national companies to adopt deserving sportspersons under Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in Sindh which will yield fruitful results in future,” he added.
He voiced his concern that Karachi, which has produced a galaxy of Olympians and internationals in hockey, cricket, boxing to name a few, is on verge of decline and attributed it to apathy of the PCB and the national sports federations.
“We have enormous talent in Sindh but they are getting step-motherly treatment from the concerned quarters,” he remarked.
He blamed the PCB for making a mockery of shifting of T20 from Lahore to Karachi on the intervention of President Asif Ali Zardari.
“They (PCB) bulldozed our multi-dimensional programme of holding charity concerts on opening (Sept 25) and closing (Oct 2) for flood affected people of the province,” he said adding that a large number of school children were also lined-up for the colourful show.
The sports adviser went on to say that the vessel carrying the Astro turf for Larkana’s Khoro Complex has anchored at the seaport and the pitch would be laid in the near future after its clearance.
“An all-Pakistan Benazir Bhutto men’s hockey tournament would mark the inauguration of the synthetic pitch in December,” he said.
Sheikh disclosed that he has recently handed over the allotment letter of 240 yards plot in Malir Development Authority (MDA) to South Asian sprint queen Naseem Hameed.
He said he has also issued orders to enhance monthly stipend of deserving sportspersons from Rs. 3,000 to Rs. 10,000 keeping in view the inflation.
Responding to a question, the adviser said he was awaiting orders for the possession of PSB Coaching Centre following devolution of sports ministry under the 18th amendment.
