Watch: CM Jagan Tries His Hands At Cricket, Badminton At Adudam Andhra Sports Festival

The tournament is being described as the largest-ever in the state, with 1.22 crore people registering to participate.

CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy playing cricket, and badminton game. ( Image Source :X/@ANI )

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy engaged in cricket, and badminton game during the launch the first-of-its-kind sporting extravaganza, the Aadudam Andhra sports tournament, in Guntur on Tuesday, news agency ANI reported. The tournament is being described as the largest-ever in the state, with 1.22 crore people registering to participate. It will be conducted for 47 days from  December 26, 2023, to Feb 10, 2024.

#WATCH | Guntur: Andhra Pradesh CM Jagan Mohan Reddy plays cricket

He also inaugurated 'Adudam Andhra', a sports festival that is taking place in the state pic.twitter.com/y6P7te2Rll

— ANI (@ANI) December 26, 2023

Aadudam Andhra is the state's inaugural sporting tournament, ranging from village/ward secretariat to state level. Cricket, volleyball, kabaddi, kho-kho, and badminton doubles festivals are held in a joyous setting from the village/ward secretariat to the state level.

According to officials, 34.19 lakh people registered to play and 88.66 lakh people registered to watch, totaling 122.85 lakh (1.22 crore), Deccan Chronicle reported.

The aims of Aadudam Andhra are to promote a healthy lifestyle via sports from the village level, to find and polish the latent talents of youths for national and international glory, and to cultivate sportsmanship.

Prizes will be granted at the seat, district, and state levels, with Rs 12 crore in cash and other interesting prizes on offer.

To compensate for the paucity of cricket grounds, matches would be staged in a single community. Many communities lack cricket fields.

Minister Roja stated that the state government will send out Sports ambassadors to encourage bright students and youth to participate in sports. There were 345 ambassadors selected, including international and national players.

"The objective of Aadudam Andhra is that we want many more PV Sindhus, Kidambi Srikanths and Ambati Rayadus to emerge from Andhra Pradesh," CM Reddy said earlier, according to Deccan Chronicle's report.