Historic Underwater Tribute to Major Dhyan Chand Marks National Sports Day in Andaman & Nicobar.
BS News Agency Port Blair, 29 August 2025: In a historic first, the Andaman & Nicobar Islands paid a spectacular underwater tribute to Major Dhyan Chand, the legendary Wizard of Hockey, at Swaraj Dweep on the occasion of National Sports Day 2025. A team of 12 professional divers and 3 officials of the Sports Authority of India, with the support of the Department of Education & Sports, A&N Administration, the Andaman Association of Tour Operators, and Dive Colours, carried placards and banners beneath the sea saluting the memory of India's hockey icon. The tribute reflected the islands' unique marine heritage and sent out a powerful national message that the Flame of Fitness burns bright everywhere on land, across the seas, and even beneath the ocean.
This historic underwater homage was the signature highlight of the Fit India Andaman Nicobar Khel Mahotsav 2025, a two-week-long festival of sport and fitness engaging communities across the archipelago from 15th to 31st August. The Mahotsav began on Independence Day with the launch of three Olympic-style Flame of Fitness torches symbolising Excellence, Friendship, and Respect. These torches, exclusively designed with motifs of the Cellular Jail crown, dugong, hornbill, mangrove roots, and Olympic rings, travelled across all three districts Nicobar, South Andaman, and North & Middle Andaman covering over 505 km and reaching 225 schools. More than 25,958 participants, including students, teachers, athletes, PRI members, tribal leaders, and the general public, joined the relay, transforming it into a true people's movement.
Alongside the torch relay, the Mahotsav featured inter-school competitions in athletics, football, volleyball, and indigenous games, beach sports and kayaking demonstrations, rope skipping challenges, mass fitness drills, cultural performances, and health and anti-drug awareness drives. Special emphasis was placed on the inclusion of Children With Special Needs (CWSN) and Persons With Disabilities (PWD), empowering them to embrace sport and fitness.
Speaking on the significance of the day, Ms. Amar Jyoti, Regional Director, Sports Authority of India, Kolkata, said: "National Sports Day is not only a tribute to Major Dhyan Chand but a reminder that sport must touch every life and every corner of our country. Through the Flame of Fitness torch relay and the extraordinary underwater homage, the Andaman & Nicobar Islands have shown that the spirit of National Sports Day can be celebrated in the most unique and inspiring ways."
The Fit India Andaman Nicobar Khel Mahotsav 2025 thus combined the power of Olympic values, the spirit of community engagement, and the pride of local heritage to create one of the most inspiring celebrations of National Sports Day ever witnessed in the islands.