This year’s campaign incorporated competitions in singing, photography, painting, drama, quizzes, debates and essay writing in both English and Urdu. The closing ceremony was chaired by Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ebad Khan, who urged the participants to own the city and work together to make it a better place to live in. “Karachi is the economic hub of Pakistan,” said Dr Ebad, in his address to the participants. He urged the youth to stay committed to their goals. The governor also sang a patriotic ghazal, ‘Ye Watan Tumhara Hai’ and then played the famous Bollywood song, ‘Tum hi ho’, on the guitar.
Karachi Commissioner Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqui, Arts Council president Prof Aijaz Ahmed Farooqui, its secretary Mohammad Ahmed Shah, Youth Festival project director Dr Fauzia Khan and Youth Affairs secretary Laeeq Ahmed also attended the closing ceremony.
According to the organisers, around 20,000 young citizens from all over Karachi participated in the festival this year. The top three contestants in each category were awarded cash prizes while all the entrants were given participation certificates. The organisers claimed that this year, the number of participants was much higher as compared to that of previous years.
According to Muhammad Ahmed Shah, the ‘I am Karachi’ campaign has given a new identity to the city.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 9th, 2015.
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