New Delhi, Mar 19 (PTI) Union Minister of State for Sports Raksha Nikhil Khadse on Wednesday highlighted the Asmita programme that aims to increase women's participation in sports by organising leagues and tournaments across disciplines. Interacting with women journalists at the Indian Women's Press Corps (IWPC) here, Khadse said while the government is making all efforts to encourage women to join sports, social awareness was also required to support the drive. Also Read | PM Narendra Modi-Led Cabinet Approves 6-Lane National Highway for High-Speed Link to JNPA Port in Maharashtra Worth INR 4,500 Crore. "We have an Asmita programme, which encourages women to join sports. Through this initiative, we can actually bring more women into sports. While the government is making efforts, we also need to increase awareness among women and girls to join sports," Khadse said. The Asmita programme, a part of the Khelo India initiative, aims to increase women's participation in sports by organising leagues and tournaments across various disciplines, providing competition exposure to female athletes of different age groups. Also Read | Cabinet Approves INR 1,500 Crore Incentive Scheme To Boost Low-Value BHIM-UPI Transactions, Targets 20,000 Crore Total Transaction Volume in FY 2024-25. Pointing at the increased participation of women at the Paris Olympics and Paralympics held in 2024, Khadse said, "In the last 10 years under the Narendra Modi government, a lot of work has been done for women, especially in the rural areas. While women in the villages now know what their rights are, more work needs to be done in many sectors." The minister also handed over prizes to the winners of a table tennis tournament organised for journalists at the IWPC. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)