30th Shaheed Durga Mal-Dal Bahadur All India Gold Cup Football from April 29 at Dharamshala

Dharamshala, April 27, 2018: This year only 8 teams shall participate in the 30th All India Shaheed Dal Bahadur Durga Mal Gold Cup football (AIDDGC) tournament.
The tournament will be played at Police Stadium Dharamshala from 29th April to 3rd of May 2018.
Secretary of the organising committee AIDDGC, RS Rana said, “The tournament will be played on league bases from this year to give more matches and opportunities to each participating team.” He said that earlier the tournament was played on the knockout basis.
Rana said that Major General VS Ranadey , Div Commander 39th Mountain Div will inaugurate the championship on 29th and Kishan Kapoor, Food, Civil Supplies & Consumer Affairs minister Himachal Pradesh will be the chief guest of the closing ceremony on 3rd May.
“The organising committee will also honour two Padam Shree awardees of this year Dr Yeshi Dhondan and Dr Vikram Chand Thakur (both residents of Dharamshala). We will also hour Ms Seema of Himachal Pradesh who holds the long distance runners record along with her coach KS Patial of SAI Dharamshala on the final day”, added Rana.
He said that IOC, ONGC and BPKF (B.P.Koirala India-Nepal Foundation) are the sponsors of the 30th All India Shaheed Dal Bahadur Durgamal Mal Gold Cup football.
Dr.Virender Parmar president of organising committee said, “Beside Gold cup a cash prize of Rs.51000 will be given to the winner and runners up team will be awarded by a cash prize of 31000. Best Goal keeper, Player of the tournament shall also be awarded and a fair play trophy shall also be given. ”
This tournament is organised to commemorate the memory of two great martyrs Major Durga Mal and Captain Dal Bahadur who laid down their lives for our beloved motherland. Both the brave soldiers hailed from Gorkha Community of Dharamshala and were enrolled in 2/1 Gorkha Rifles. Later, they joined Indian National Army in 1942 raised by Netaji Subhash Chander Bose, when the Second World War was at its peak. Major Durga Mal was captured by the British troops on 27th March, 1944 and was sent to gallows on 25th August 1944 at the Red Fort, Delhi when he was barley 31 years of age.