Anurag Singh Thakur inaugurates First BIMSTEC Aquatics Championships

Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Anurag Singh Thakur launched the BIMSTEC Aquatics Championship 2024 in New Delhi on 6 February 2024. The BIMSTEC Aquatics Championship is being organized for the first time.

• The inauguration ceremony was attended by the Union Sports Minister, Nepal's Sports Minister Dig Bahadur Limbu, BIMSTEC High Commissioner and dignitaries from the participating countries.

BIMSTEC Aquatics Championship 2024 to be held:

• The first BIMSTEC Aquatics Championship is being organized from 6 to 9 February 2024. Held at Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Swimming Pool Complex, Delhi.
• In this, competitions are being organised for the age group below 20 years.
• A total of three sports events, swimming, water polo and diving events are being organised.
• A total of 39 medals will be awarded in these three sports events and a total of 9 trophies will also be awarded.
• 268 athletes from different BIMSTEC member countries are participating in the BIMSTEC Aquatics Championships 2024. Also, more than 500 personnel are participating in this event.

About BIMSTEC:

• The BIMSTEC sub-regional organization came into existence through the Bangkok Declaration on June 6, 1997.
• BIMSTEC stands for Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation.
• The seven-member BIMSTEC constitutes a unique link between South and South-East Asian countries.
• BIMSTEC has five members from South Asia (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal and Sri Lanka) and two members from South-East Asia (Myanmar and Thailand).
• BIMSTEC's secretariat is located in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
• Secretary General of BIMSTEC: Indra Mani Pandey (Indian diplomat).
• 25 percent of the world's population lives in South Asia and the South East Asian region (BIMSTEC).

Sports organized by BIMSTEC:

• For the first time in the history of the BIMSTEC organization, a sports competition is being hosted in India.
• This was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the fourth BIMSTEC summit in 2018. Prime Minister Modi had announced the organization of BIMSTEC Youth Water Sports Competition in India.
• The event, initially scheduled for 2021, was postponed to 2024 due to the global COVID-19 pandemic outbreak.