India's Olympic Medals : Eradicating Patriarchy and Poverty
New Delhi:
For long, Indians in sporting arena believed in one good old theorem of principles that one could win or lose in sports, but what is important is that you must play on, the show must go on in the spirit of the game and harmonious co-existence.
India would participate in every Olympic and passively prove themselves as self-defeatingly tolerant for failures. There would be no postmortem.
Come circa 2021, India is a changed nation today, at least it appears so.
In the just concluded Tokyo2020, what drove the scores of Indian hockey stars and athletes is the 'hunger' for win. Conventionally, one could call it 'fire in the belly' - a salad of powerful sense of determination and ambition.
Indian women hockey captain Rani Rampal's father pulled a hand-cart and mother worked as a domestic help. There were others with similar stories of penury to medals and social respectability.
In its long history, more than a century if pre-independent days are counted, India for the first time finished with seven Olympic medals including a prestigious Gold in Javelin throw for men.
"I always wanted to see an Indian win an Olympic Gold (in athlete)," says sprinter P T Usha, who had finished fourth and missed Bronze in 1984 Los Angeles track event.
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From President of the republic to the Prime Minister, former sporting stars, film celebrities everyone have been rejoicing the performance of Team India. Its Olympic fever in a nation - which about a week back looked demoralised fighting Covid19 and the pandemic-inflicted economic crisis and joblessness.
But there are a few vital underlining messages from the moments of sporting glory for India, and thus a few important lessons too.
One important takeaway is that Tokyo2020 marks the emergence of the underdogs.
But the bigger message would be that the Sports have proved to be tools of great social metamorphosis for a country of 1.35 billion which was satisfied till now not winning any medal for years.
The 'revolution' is happening in the form of fighting two 'almost permanent' malaise - Poverty and Patriarchy.
Sports writer A. Andalib says, "Tokyo2020 for India marks a turning point more from social point of view. This is now an era of underdogs and underprivileged. Women have fought patriarchy specially in Haryana and a host of hockey players and others are in sports essentially in search of a better life".
Agreeing with him, Nagaland politician, a former Minister Thomas Ngullie told UCAN: "Athlete and boxing are not rich man's sports in India. Unlike cricket stars from Delhi and Mumbai, these young boys and girls often are homeless. A few still stay in mud houses and eat sitting on floors. Sports is a game-changer in their lives now".
This is precisely the face of social transformation of India vis-a-vis sports.
For long, Indian boys and girls focused on classroom text books and 'mugging' exercises. They would parrot nursery rhymes in young age and when they grow up they would mug lessons and then spew it out in the examination hall. Part of the lacuna lay in the education system too.
Sports was never taken as a dependable route for financial support and self-respect for millions of middle class and poor people and hundreds of tribals who have natural affinity towards sports.
In 1983, India lifted World Cup for Cricket at Lords in London. That drove the nation cricket crazy, but other sports were neglected.
In Haryana state in north of India, the society is generally of conservatives and male chauvanism.
The state recorded lopsided sexual demographic in 2012 where there were just 877 women to every 1,000 men following years of infanticide and abortions. In 2020 too, there was marginal improvement, yet these concerns remain. Now the state has 922 girls for every 1000 men.
Hence it was not easy to do well in sports for young girls braving these social hurdles and tough conditions.
In Haryana, parents want young girls to wear Salwar-Kameez (Indian outfit that covers entire body) and that they should return home before dark. There would be Khap-panchayats (kangaroo courts) in villages passing diktats on women attires and matters related to girls conduct in public places and marriages.
A village council in Jind District in Haryana had issued a diktat reducing the marriageable age of girls from 18 to 16. This was argued as a measure to check growing rape incidents.
In India, legally men below 21 years old cannot marry and minimum marriageable age for female is 18. "But the pronouncements from these kangaroo courts are usually followed. The government and police would look the other way. So if some girls and parents decided that they should play games like hockey wearing shorts or other sporting attires, it was a case of silent revolution," says political observer Vidyarthi Kumar.
However, he agrees, enthusiasm remains unwavering today. This was exemplified by the players' performance and the encouragement they got in the run up to the sporting extravaganza especially from parents and various sporting bodies.
The Gold medalist Neeraj Chopra was rightly nurtured by an official sports institute.
Gold medalist Neeraj Chopra, an in service defence personnel, also comes from a little known village Khandra in Haryana and his father has been a humble farmer.
There is also a paradox. Despite patriarchy issues and conservative social structure, in 2021, 25 per cent of India's athletes in the Olympics were from Haryana. The state's population is little over 2 per cent vis-a-vis the national figures.
Overall, these reflect a social change. "Unlike past, now we have parents who come to us to enroll their daughters," said Sukhwinder Singh, who runs a training academy for hockey in Shahbad, about 170 km from capital Delhi.
Another woman hockey player, Parasdeep Kaur, says people tell her father that she should be married off without further delay. Little wonder, she is the only one pursuing the game from her village.
But, India is certainly changing.
Other factors those have brought these changes include globalisation and IT technology ensuring deeper penetration of mobile handsets and internet connectivity and also social media in Indian villages.
People have reasons to dream big these days. Some of them dare to do so fighting all social taboo.
Bronze winner, boxer Lovlina Borgohain hails from a development-starved place called Sarupathar in Assam adjoining Nagaland border.
Even in the new millennium, people from these places did not know how to use of mobile handsets.
This scribe grew up in Dimapur in Nagaland and we used to mock at people coming from Sarupathar.
Their innocence would make us laugh. Today they have Olympic medalist ! It cannot be bigger for that hamlet.
Indian women hockey star Salima Tete in Jharkhand still lives in a mud house and for her hockey stick and a running ball are today aimed at changing the lives for herself and her parents.
Gurbax Singh, a former national Boxing coach, sums up these stories well.
"Most boxers are from villages and from lower strata poor or middle class. They look for personal and social security through sports. If these persist, Indian sports is set for mega upheaval," Singh told journalists.
In Manipur, weightlifter Mirabai Chanu took lifts from unknown truckers to go to the stadium for practice from village Nongpok Kakching.
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March on Haryana, Punjab - Top performing states in sports
New Delhi
There are certainly medals to win in the Olympics though the spirit of the game also matters.
But another important factor is the infrastructure facilities and right training and atmosphere for the athletes and other sporting icons.
In Rajya Sabha on August 9, no less than the chairman and country's Vice President, M Venkaiah Naidu, did some plain speaking. “Forty per cent of the members of the Indian contingent were from Punjab and Haryana,” he pointed out adding the vital words of advice - “other states should emulate Punjab and Haryana” in creating infrastructures.
Between Punjab and Haryana again, observers say lately Haryana has been better off. Of Course, Haryana was once a part of Punjab and only in 1966 it came a separate state.
Sporting laurels and laudatory words about them is actually nothing new for Haryana.
For long, the state has produced acclaimed sporting stars and Olympiads. In fact, cricket legend Kapil Dev is also from the state and was aptly crowned 'Haryana Hurricane'. But most of it also had to do with individual passion, but Haryana is India's sporting powerhouse.
And why not? "Indian wrestling means Haryana,” said 83-year-old triple Olympian Uday Chand a few years ago.
He represented India in 1968, 1964 and 1960 Olympics.
For Haryana sports, there is a strong military connection too and it did not start with Rajputana Rifles and Neeraj Chopra.
There are a host of Haryana players who joined army and after retirement, many of them actually took to spotting and coaching young talents.
There are several reasons for Haryana's success in sports. One of them is also about state's inherent 'culture' where emphasis is given to robust physique !
Geographical reasons, poverty and also dependence on farming, the state encourages men and women to work in the fields under a sweltering sun.
For men, joining Fauz - the army and police is a much sought after profession. And when it comes to wrestling, they are into wrestling by a natural affinity and also in boxing.
At the Rio Olympics in 2016, Haryana in fact sent the largest representation of 20 players while 14 of them came from Punjab.
Punjab's domination in Indian contingent has been an almost permanent feature for a long time.
Analysing these, it ought to be stated that Punjab Police over the years have proved to be the real 'booster' factor in ensuring sporting glories.
Some players from Haryana too have benefited in the past from Punjab's encouragement.
A noted Volleyball star and Arjuna awardee Amir Singh hails from Haryana but joined Punjab Police in 1992, was promoted as inspector in 1998.
Punjab of course has been winning the national volleyball tournament from time to time.
Wrestling has always been an integral part of rural Haryana.
Village and Mohalla prides are involved in Dangals. Men of various ages and lately even young gals in shorts and in loincloths compete for prizes that vary from cash or a pot of ghee !
In the 1968 Olympics in Mexico, there were two members from Haryana – Bhim Singh (athletics) and Udey Chand (wrestling).
In fact, within a week Haryana was carved out of Punjab on November 1, 1966, athlete Bhim Singh from Bhiwani became the first Asian Games gold medalist for the new-born state.
Bhim Singh created a record with a high jump of 2.05 metres.
Another performer was heavyweight boxer Hawa Singh who won the gold medal at the games.
In recent times, in the Beijing Olympics in 2008, of the 55-member squad, nine players were from Haryana. Remember, Indian Hockey team did not qualify for the Beijing Olympics.
In the 2012 London and 2016 Rio, Haryana sent the maximum players to put on Indian cap and also won medals.
Boxer Vijender Singh won a bronze in Beijing, wrestlers Yogeshwar Dutt and Sakshi Malik returned with a silver medal and a bronze from the London and Rio Olympics, respectively.
Sakshi also became the country’s first woman wrestler to win an Olympic medal.
At the Rio Olympics in 2016, Haryana in fact sent the largest representation of 20 players while 14 of them came from Punjab.
Punjab's domination in Indian contingent too has been an almost permanent feature for a long time.
Analysing these, it ought to be stated that Punjab Police over the years have proved to be the real 'booster' factor in ensuring sporting glories.
Some players from Haryana too have benefited in the past from Punjab's encouragement.
A noted Volleyball star and Arjuna awardee Amir Singh hails from Haryana but joined Punjab Police in 1992, was promoted as inspector in 1998.
Punjab of course has been winning the national volleyball tournament from time to time.
Educational institutes in Punjab too have been doing well in sports.
The Punjabi University in Patiala between 2012 and 2016 had won the Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Trophy for excellence in sports for the fifth time in a row.
In Amritsar, the Guru Nanak Dev University (GNDU) has in fact won the trophy over 20 times.
Obvious question would be, where are other universities and other states. Of course there were sports in Kolkata too. But they were more in club football and also in the form of players ‘changing three clubs’ and the stinking politics involved in it.
In 2021, when Mamata Banerjee screams 'Khela hobey', it's not about sports.
It is about political violence.
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