New Delhi. Imagine a hundred - plus armies from around the world battling it out in the sports arena. The target: World Peace.

Indeed, it’s for world peace that India will host the fourth World Military Games this year at Hyderabad from 14 to 21 October and there should be participation from all the 127 members of the CISM, officially called in French as Conseil International du Sport Militaire.

The mega event, organised one year before the Olympic. Games, is being held in Asia for the first time.

This will also be India’s biggest sports event yet.

The first event of the series was held in the Italian capital of Rome in 1995, marking the 50th anniversary of the end of the Second World War and the ratification of the Charter of United Nations.

The idea of the games is to promote friendship between the armed forces “in the spirit of the Olympics,” and “without any political, religious or racial considerations,” explained Sitanshu Kar, the spokesman for the Ministry of Defence.

World peace is the ultimate aim.

Notably, it is a city which offers to host the games, and not a country. The city of Hyderabad was chosen because of its success in hosting the 2002 National Games and 2003 Afro Asian Games.

After the first event in 1995, the second was held in Zagreb, Croatia (August 1999) and the third again in Italy, in the Sicilian city of Catania (December 2003). The Games move out of Europe now and the Indian offer, in 2003, to host them were readily accepted.

The games are managed internationally by the International Sports Military Council (CISM), which has underlined that the event must be held in a dignified manner, and without any racial, religious or regional considerations or bias. CISM is based in the Belgian capital of Brussels.

The Games are a multi-sport event, and except for Sailing and Triathlon, which will be conducted at Mumbai (Bombay), 15 sports disciplines will be conducted at Hyderabad. Both men and women will take part.

Broadly, the event has been put into four categories:
1. Military Sports. Military Pentathlon, Shooting, Parachuting.
2. Individual/Team Sports. Football, Handball, Volleyball, Triathlon, Sailing, Swimming, Track & Field.
3. Combat Sports. Judo, Boxing and Wrestling.
4. Demonstration Sports. Hockey and Kabaddi.

The theme for the logo has been taken from the famous five rings of the Olympic Logo depicting five inhabitant continents. (North & South Americas are counted as one continent, Asia, Europe, Africa and Australia being the other four).

The Great Indian Bison has been adopted as the mascot of the Games.

Majestic and normally imperturbable, it is always treated with healthy respect in the animal kingdom. It possesses immense strength, vigour and doggedness. When provoked, its spurt, ferocity and speed of charge drives terror into the hearts of its opponents.

The 54 Infantry Division of the Indian Army, which is located at Hyderabad, has the bison as its formation sign, and accordingly, it has been considered apt to adopt it as the mascot.

Chief of Army Staff Gen J J Singh, Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC), is taking keen interest to ensure the success of the Games. The Military World Games Secretariat has already been set up in New Delhi, and is the nodal point for coordinating all activities concerning the Games.

Various events to promote the spirit of the Games are already being held all over India.

The Secretariat functions under the President Services Sports Control Board (SSCB), in this case Air Marshal A K Singh (Retd), who is the Additional Working Chairman of the Organising Committee.