KikxNow , Digital Creator

  Musarrat Ullah Jan – KikxNow , Digital Creator Administrative approval has been granted for a major development project aimed at upgrading the Wazir Bagh Tehsil Ground in Peshawar. The project will be completed at an estimated cost of more than Rs 797 million. Under the approved plan, the ground will be equipped with modern sports and public facilities. These include a state of the art futsal ground, a cricket practice academy, basketball and volleyball courts, walkways, and a dedicated parking area. The project also covers the construction of an improved drainage system, stairways, and a tube well. In addition, a new lavatory block will be built, while the existing pavilion and office will be renovated. Internal water and electricity supply systems will be upgraded, a solar power system will be installed, and the boundary wall will be strengthened. LED lights will also be installed to improve visibility and safety. Officials say the project will promote sports activities...

  Musarrat Ullah Jan – KikxNow , Digital Creator Despite claims of promoting sports, tensions have escalated in Bannu between local sports associations and the Regional Sports Office. The dispute intensified when several young athletes were excluded from trials, prompting protests from various associations, who also reached out to their local members of the provincial assembly. Recently, Nilofar Begum, a female member of the Provincial Assembly from Bannu, formally wrote to the DG Sports demanding that experts from local associations be included in the trials and training programs. However, there has been no response from the DG Sports so far. Meanwhile, representatives of some associations expressed concern over threats from the Regional Sports Officer. They revealed that players were instructed to attend training despite most under-21 athletes returning late from schools and colleges. Due to security concerns in Bannu, parents are reluctant to let their children travel late...

  Musarrat Ullah Jan – KikxNow , Digital Creator The tartan track at Peshawar Sports Complex has turned out to be the slowest, costliest, and mysterious construction in the province. It is a track where athletes learn patience instead of sprints, and by the time it's ready, the national games are over. And that's not all: KP Sports Directorate seems to have lost their microphones, so that nobody is saying a word. Here’s the story: athletes were told, “Give us one month, the tartan track will be ready, practice will happen, and medals will follow.” One month turned into two, two months into six, and finally, the national games took place in Karachi. KP athletes reached the venue only to realize that practice wasn’t necessary to compete. Result? A single bronze medal-a symbolic reminder that once upon a time, Peshawar had dreams of a tartan track. The most astonishing part? Foreign experts supervising the track are doing so online. Initially, two foreign specialists were to...

  Musarrat Ullah Jan – KikxNow , Digital Creator PESHAWAR: While the playing fields of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) are often celebrated for producing world-class talent, a different kind of game is being played within the corridors of power—one where the rules change every few months and the players in charge rarely stay long enough to finish the match. The provincial government recently took a landmark step in the Department of Commerce Education and Management Sciences by decreeing that leadership roles (BPS-19) must stay within their own professional cadre. It was a victory for institutional expertise. Yet, just across the administrative divide, the KP Sports Directorate remains trapped in a cycle of "bureaucratic tourism" that critics say is stifling the future of the province’s youth. For years, the Sports Directorate has been treated as a "transit station" for the Provincial Management Service (PMS) and other non-related cadres. Officers with no background i...

  Musarrat Ullah Jan – KikxNow , Digital Creator Director General Sports Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Tashfeen Haider, has taken notice of reported issues in the newly constructed tartan track at the Peshawar Sports Complex and conducted an inspection visit to assess the quality of work. During the visit, the DG Sports, accompanied by former athlete and Director of Imran Khan Cricket Stadium, inspected the tartan track and held discussions with the contractor regarding the ongoing construction. Complaints had been received that the track was not being developed according to the required standards and specifications. Following the inspection, DG Sports KP summoned athletics coach Zafran to review the technical aspects of the track. The coach briefed the contractor on ground-related requirements and highlighted areas where further improvement was possible. To ensure quality control, DG Sports KP directed that coach Zafran be formally assigned to monitor the project on a daily basis. T...

  Musarrat Ullah Jan – KikxNow , Digital Creator The ongoing Tartan track project in the Sports Complex, Peshawar, is also suffering from extreme delays and confused decisions and a complete lack of response from the concerned authorities. Because of the delay, now the National Games have taken place without the facility getting completed, which is now causing extreme problems for the players, especially in athletic and football events. In the recently concluded National Games at Karachi, the athletes from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were fortunate to take home just one bronze medal in athletics. The reasons cited by athletes for such low performance are the lack of a proper Tartan track. Before the Games took place, it was guaranteed by athletes that it would be finished within a month. Nonetheless, several months after, it is still unfinished. The project originally targeted for completion in August 2024 has not only caused delays but has moved at a snail pace without anything happe...

  Musarratullah Jan , Kikxnow , digital creator “The Merged Districts Sports Directorate! It is not an average government department. It is a whole state of being, a whole philosophy of life. In this world, games are a rare occasion, while acrobatic performances are frequent. It is not sportsmen who take part in racing, it is documents. It is not the ground that harbors the goal, it is the office.” As this region was previously known as FATA (Federally Administered Tribal Areas), there is an unwritten constitution in play even at this point in time, “Asking is forbidden, speaking is dangerous, and questioning is professional suicide.” No one in this place asks questions, period, and if a soul dares to make the mistake of inquiring, he or she immediately gets the reminder: "This is the Merged Districts! Rules don't reign supreme, persons do." Deputation officers come like it's a picnic, but they can’t remember how to leave, as if they lost their ID card. With t...

  Musarrat Ullah Jan – KikxNow , Digital Creator The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has launched a formal investigation into alleged financial and administrative irregularities in two major sports infrastructure projects, summoning 22 officials from multiple provincial departments to appear before the Provincial Inspection Team (PIT). According to official records, the inquiry has been initiated by the Planning and Development Department following reports of unauthorized expenditures, procedural violations, and deviations from approved project plans under the Annual Development Programme (ADP). The investigation concerns two province-wide schemes: “Development of Various Sports Facilities and Repair of Existing Facilities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa” (ADP No. 1899/18052), and “Construction of Playgrounds at Union Council Level” (ADP No. 1972/210575). Under a formal memorandum issued by the authorities, the summoned officers have been directed to appear before the PIT on the sp...

  Musarrat Ullah Jan – KikxNow , Digital Creator A serious lapse in accountability has been highlighted in the Merged Districts Sports Directorate of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where costly bicycles donated by the UNDP for the benefit of athletes have become untraceable and official records are not available. This was revealed through responses under the Right to Information Act. As per the RTI replies, the UNDP donated around 12 high-quality bicycles to the erstwhile FATA Sports Directorate, now Merged Districts Sports Directorate after the merger in 2018. These were reportedly handed over to a coach named Imran Khan for use in training or competitions. However, when asked about the procedure for formal issuance, purpose of distribution, stock entry in official registers, or deposit in the directorate's stores, the department replied that no such record exists. A follow-up RTI response in 2025 explained that the office of the directorate had been shifted from the old FATA Secreta...

  Musarrat ullah Jan – KikxNow , Digital Creator What began as a routine enquiry ordered by the Minister for Sports in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is fast turning into an uncomfortable mirror for the entire sports administration. The scope of information demanded from the Sports Directorate is so wide, and so detailed, that it automatically forces a fundamental question: was this merely mismanagement, or a sustained pattern of abuse carried out under the cover of development projects? The investigation pertains to two different projects: most notably, the much-publicized "One Thousand Sports Facilities" scheme, and development works claimed at the Union Council level. On paper, these programs were undertaken to decentralize sports infrastructure and create opportunities for youth at the grassroots. In actuality, as the question marks of inquiry would suggest, these projects have become convenient conduits for irregular spending, non-transparent decision-making, and favoritism. T...