"Festival brings out the softer image of Pakistan"

Impressive athletic records were set at the Punjab Youth Festival, writes Faisal Saleh Yaqub, 22, a Commonwealth Correspondent from Lahore. But the festival was also a showcase for the technical talents of youth and the opportunities being created.

By arranging Youth Festival 2014, the Government of Punjab provided a great opportunity for the youth to demonstrate their faculties in the arena of sports.

This festival proved to be an outlet for the youngsters to use their energies on positive activities, creating a spirit of tolerance, association, discipline and sportsman spirit. One of the great aspects of this festival was that male and female youth were provided with opportunity to express their talents that would definitely broaden their vision towards life and bring a positive attitude toward hard realities of life.

This event helped to bring youth of different shades of life from all over the province to one platform. It is important to mention here that many world records were made by the participants of the festival. This festival also helped to bring out the softer image of Pakistan in the world community and had significant importance in view of the on-going war on terrorism.

 The venue for the opening ceremony was National Hockey Stadium, Lahore. More than 56,000 students attended the ceremony and made the Guinness World Record for flag waving with the largest number of people. The largest human flag was also made by the youth of Pakistan at the National Hockey Stadium, and a certificate was awarded by Guinness World Record. Earlier, Bangladesh held this record with the participation of more than 27,000 people.

Guinness World record for most pushups with one arm was made by Muhammad Arbab, an officer of the Pakistan Army. He attained this record by doing 65 pushups with one arm in a time frame of just one minute. Previously, a British citizen held this record by doing 31 pushups in one minute.

Engineering and IT sector events such as Startup Pakistan, Robo Wars, Robo Navigation, Speed Wiring Contest and Xtreme Coding were also held as part of Punjab youth festival. Students from universities across Pakistan actively participated in these events. These events proved to be a great opportunity for students to showcase their technical skills. Many projects in the field of science and technology were also presented. These projects addressed the energy crisis faced by Pakistan and provided possible solutions. In most of the projects, emphasis was laid on the ways to utilize the entire natural as well as renewable energy sectors to tackle the energy crisis of Pakistan. The projects were not limited to the field of science and technology; many innovative business ideas were also presented by the students. Some of the best ideas were selected and provided with the necessary funding by the government.

Essay writing competitions and short story writing competitions were also part of this youth festival. In addition, various sports competitions were held throughout the province of Punjab in which the youth participated with great zeal. Indeed, this youth festival was a great opportunity for the youth to engage themselves in healthy activities.

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About me:
My name is Faisal Saleh Yaqub, and I am from Lahore. I am an undergraduate engineering student at GIK Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology, KPK, Pakistan.

My hobbies include reading, writing, gaming and travelling. I usually write on topics related to social issues and youth. I believe that youth can change the future of any nation. I always strive to highlight the importance of youth as a game changer of today.

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Opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the Commonwealth Youth Programme. Articles are published in a spirit of dialogue, respect and understanding. If you disagree, why not submit a response?

To learn more about becoming a Commonwealth Correspondent please visit: http://www.yourcommonwealth.org/submit-articles/commonwealthcorrespondents/

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