The Navi Mumbai District-Level School Sports Competition for 2023-24, organized jointly by the Zilla Parishad Thane, and the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation's (NMMC) Sports and Cultural Affairs Department under the guidance of the Sports and Youth Services Directorate, was inaugurated by Municipal Commissioner Rajesh Narvekar with great enthusiasm.

In this context, Vijaykumar Mhasale, Additional Commissioner, Lalita Babar, Deputy Commissioner of the Sports and Cultural Affairs Department, Purushottam Pujari, Member of the District Sports Committee, and Dhananjay Vanmali, Sports Officer, along with other dignitaries, were present.

The competition, which began in 2009, has seen increasing participation from students in Navi Mumbai, with over 30,000 athletes participating in 46 different sports categories this year. This growth in sports participation is a testament to the enthusiasm for sports in satellite city and the excellent nurturing environment for athletes, which has been acknowledged by the President of FIFA, who expressed his admiration for the football fields in Navi Mumbai.

Highlighting the sports development in the city, Commissioner Narvekar commended the efforts of Ms. Lalita Babar, an accomplished Olympian from Navi Mumbai, who is currently serving as the Deputy Commissioner of the Sports and Cultural Affairs Department. Her achievements inspire athletes in the region, and her presence bodes well for the development of various sports in the city.

Providing details about the competition, Deputy Commissioner Lalita Babar stated that over 260 schools and more than 30,000 students from Municipal Corporation’s jurisdiction are participating in the district-level sports competition. Starting with football, the competition will gradually encompass various school sports, with 126 boys' teams and 78 girls' teams participating in football alone. Five schools from NMMC are also participating in this football competition.

The official inauguration of the competition was held at Anchorwala School and St. Mary's School, where young athletes aged 14 years and below demonstrated their football skills on the field. Commissioner Narvekar officially kicked off the district-level school sports competition, taking a penalty kick to symbolise the start of the exciting event.