PM urges youngsters for a winning future 

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has called on children and adolescents to equip themselves with education, sports, cultural awareness and wider skills, saying the country's future rests in their hands, as he inaugurated the second season of the nationwide Notun Kuri Sports programme at the District Stadium in Khulna on Thursday.

Addressing thousands of young participants at Khulna District Stadium, Prime Minister described today's children as the true owners of Bangladesh and urged them to take responsibility for building a stronger and more prosperous country.

"Today's children and adolescents are the true owners of this country. They must build Bangladesh into a strong and prosperous nation with their own hands," he said, emphasising that academic education alone would not be enough to succeed on the global stage.

The Prime Minister stressed that young people must develop their abilities in sports, arts, culture and other fields alongside their formal studies. Praising the performances by Bangladesh Krira Shiksha Protisthan (BKSP) trainees, who showcased their sporting skills alongside dance and cultural presentations, he said Bangladeshi children had the potential to excel not only in education but also in sports and cultural pursuits.

He also outlined an initiative to introduce a third language, in addition to Bangla and English, to broaden students' intellectual horizons and equip them with skills for an increasingly interconnected world.

Tarique Rahman expressed satisfaction with the overwhelming response to the second edition, which has attracted 1,623,218 online registrations from children and adolescents nationwide. He assured participants that the government would work to create better facilities and opportunities for their development.

The Prime Minister announced that the final competitions of the second season would take place in June next year, setting the next major milestone for the nationwide talent hunt.

He inaugurated the programme at 3:45pm by releasing balloons and pigeons at the stadium, while also hoisting the national flag and meeting young competitors representing the 10 sporting disciplines. The opening ceremony was simultaneously broadcast online across 503 upazilas.

As He entered the stadium, students and young athletes occupying the galleries greeted him enthusiastically. He walked towards them and returned their waves, prompting scenes of excitement across the venue. Youth and Sports State Minister Md Aminul Haque and ministry secretary Mahfuzul Alam Khan welcomed the Prime Minister.

Held under the theme 'Sports as a profession, assurance for the family', the second edition has expanded considerably from its inaugural season. A total of 4,599 unions are covered by the competition, which is open to children aged 10 to 14. Volleyball and table tennis have joined the original eight disciplines, taking the total to 10.

The programme is being implemented by the Department of Sports under the Ministry of Youth and Sports, in line with a commitment in the BNP's election manifesto. Its central objective is to identify promising athletes at grassroots level and provide them with a structured pathway towards professional sport.

The first season, inaugurated in Sylhet on 2 May, attracted around 168,000 young participants. Of them, 306 promising athletes were selected for advanced training at BKSP. At Thursday's ceremony, the Prime Minister also handed over admission offer letters to 40 selected youngsters, 28 girls and 12 boys, who will receive government-supported education and sports training at the institution from January.

The opening ceremony also featured traditional Chinese dragon and lion dances performed by students from Yunnan Minzu University in Kunming, adding an international dimension to the occasion. 

The performances formed part of an ongoing sports training exchange between the Chinese university and BKSP. Under the programme, BKSP coaches provide cricket training to Chinese students, while Chinese coaches train Bangladeshi athletes in wushu, table tennis, athletics, badminton, swimming and diving.

With participation on such a scale, Notun Kuri Sports is seeking to turn the search for sporting talent into a sustained development pathway rather than a one-off competition.