Athletic dreams sink in rising waters in Gurdaspur

The recent floods have meant different things to different people. For sportspersons belonging to the lower strata of society, they may well spell the end of their cherished athletic dreams. With their parents’ livelihoods washed away, these families can no longer afford to support their children’s sporting ambitions.

Such families face substantial difficulties while supporting their children’s athletic ambitions. This is primarily due to financial strain, intense societal pressure and an underdeveloped family support system. Unlike families who are wealthy and well-heeled, they lack a safety netting. They cannot risk giving up the security of education for an uncertain sports career. A poor sportsman may be at the peak of his prowess when one injury can end it all. For families, who run their kitchens with difficulty, the high cost of coaching and training for professional sports often comes at the expense of investing in their children’s education, creating a high-stakes trade-off.

Take Harparneet Kaur, for example. She is preparing for an international judo tournament in Egypt. A medal-winner at the national cadet judo championships (U-17), her family had earlier moved from Rawalpindi village to a rented house in the city, so she could live closer to her training centre. But the floods wreaked havoc on their ancestral home. This meant the entire budget of the family went haywire. Devastated and disheartened, Harparneet feared her dream of competing internationally was slipping away. She only resumed training after her coaches reminded her of an old Arabic proverb: “What is meant for you will reach you, even if it is beneath two mountains. What is not meant for you will not reach you, even if it is between your two lips.” If she is ordained to play for India, she will.

Judoka Gurpreet Singh lives in the nearby village of Narpur. He is an All-India Inter-University champion. Flood waters entered his house and destroyed everything and anything. Their paddy crop got submerged, with silt and sludge entering the fields. It will takes months for things to normalise. The Punjab Sports Department (PSD) owes him some prize money, which he is eagerly awaiting.

Then there is Raghu Mehra, a promising young judo player who lost his father. His mother, a teacher in a private school, earns barely enough to survive, as these institutions, except a few reputed ones, are notorious for underpaying staff. Raghu is widely regarded as one of the finest young talents to emerge in recent years. A gold medallist at the recent National School Games, these days he sustains himself on the benevolence of his coach Balwinder Kaur. The PSD owes him Rs 1.75 lakh, a crucial amount that could determine whether he continues in the sport. Though the floods did not directly affect him, fate may have other plans.

Varneet Singh, a national medallist, like many others of his ilk, is living on difficult days. His father, an auto-rickshaw driver, used to set aside 25 per cent of his daily earnings just for Varneet’s diet. That was before the floods hit their home. Varneet says he often dreams of representing India on the world stage, with the national anthem playing in the background. As they say, a dream without ambition is like a car without fuel. You are not going anywhere. He is owed Rs 40,000 by the PSD that could help keep that dream alive.

Rajnish Kumar, a silver medallist at the junior national championships that were held in Dehradun, is also struggling. His father, pitches tents to earn a living, has been left unemployed as the floods have wiped out any demand for tent services. In 2022-23, the Punjab Government announced the Nirmal Singh Memorial Scholarship — Rs 4,000 per month for Rajnish. As it happens in this country, after the announcement nothing happened. Shortly after, he was selected to represent India at the Asian Judo Cup in Almaty. To get there, he had to borrow Rs 1.5 lakh at an exorbitant rate of interest. Like some other players, Rajnish is being helped by his coaches Amarjit Shastri and Ravi Kumar.

These are just a handful of stories. Many more athletes, especially those in hockey and football, have been left at the mercy of God.

Gurdaspur is not an affluent city, as it lacks the industrial development seen in places like Amritsar, Ludhiana or Jalandhar. Reason enough why youngsters take up sports that are affordable. In contrast, children from wealthy families opt for cricket, polo, golf, snooker, shooting and equestrian sports where money provides a clear edge. However, here in Gurdaspur, football, judo and hockey is the name of the game.

Among all these young sportspersons, a common factor is fear. It’s not just the fear of losing a match; it’s the fear that their families’ sacrifices will be in vain. This pressure leads to anxiety, often robbing sport of the very joy that drew them to it in the first place.

Sportsmen bidding adieu to their beloved games will remain, among other things, one of the tragedies of these floods. And this deluge has certainly created an uneven playing field for poor players as compared to their wealthier counterparts who have the resources to bounce back.