Due to lack of good governance at state level, football activities have come to a standstill in several parts of the country

Navneet Singh

Way back in early 2000 I was assigned to cover a local wrestling tournament in Mohali, in the vicinity of Chandigarh. The prize money ‘Dangal’ or mud wrestling competition was being conducted in the memory of a young wrestler who had passed away, the father of the wrestler said.

It was heartening to witness the local patronage the organisers of the “Dangal” which is still popular in several parts in Northern India, enjoyed. They collected more than Rs one lakh on the spot as people generously contributed.

The cash prize for the main bout or open weight category was then Rs 70,000. Such wrestling competitions are still popular in Northern India and other regions, where people come to watch wrestling bouts and also provide support to young wrestlers in cash or kind.

Grassroots activity

A few miles away from Mohali, none would have contributed even a single penny to Chandigarh Football Association (CFA) — it used to be run by one official of the Accountant General, Haryana.

As a correspondent covering local sports, I would often run into secretary of the Chandigarh football body and other officials of CFA. There was hardly significant grassroots activity done.

Good governance

Good governance is important to strengthen the foundation which eventually builds up a strong edifice. This fact is majorly overlooked for reasons best known to key officials of the state sports bodies.

Monitoring system, if any, by the parent body— All India Football Federation (AIFF) having its headquarters in Delhi, wasn’t visible in Chandigarh. At times CFA manipulated the score-sheet, it came to light when there was some confusion in the names of the goal scorers.

Nothing much has changed in Indian football in all these years. The development at the grassroots is negligible. Officials are more worried about their continuance in the federation.

The CFA key official has been at the helm for more than 30 years and is still running a football show, it is learnt, in Chandigarh.

The CFA was largely dependent on the parent body—- AIFF for financial support to conduct regional football tournaments as there was no local patronage. “We don’t have funds,” CFA officials would often repeat this during meetings on the sidelines of local tournaments.

Football hub

The Sector 17 Football Stadium under the aegis of Chandigarh administration, in the heart of City was the main hub of football then. It was the main venue for both state and regional competitions. Sadly, the Sector 17 Football Stadium has been turned into a multipurpose playing venue by the Chandigarh Administration, which has severely damaged the growth of football in the city. Currently, the Sector 17 Football ground doesn’t meet criteria to conduct state or regional level competitions. “Lack of playing facilities is the main reason for decline of football in Chandigarh,” Kanwar Vinod Kumar, former international from Chandigarh said. “Several government run schools have ample space to play football, but they are not being utilised.”

Playground

Due to lack of a playground, Chandigarh’s Youngsters Club has temporarily closed down its activities since June this year. The club was set up way back in 1997 by Kanwar Vinod Kumar’s father (Kanwar Harbans Lal). The club greatly contributed to the growth of grassroots development in the region. The Youngsters Club also competed at the prestigious Durand Football Club between 2015-2018.

 “The Chandigarh Administration should be sports friendly,” Kanwar Vinod Kumar asserted. “Playgrounds should be made available at a nominal fee for practice as well for tournaments.”

Messi India Tour

It was sheer coincidence that Argentina’s football superstar Lionel Messi’s India Tour happened when football was facing a crisis in the country. The AIFF is unable to start its premier domestic tournament ISL (Indian Super League) this year because there is no one to finance the league. There was uproar on the social media platforms that huge money running over Rs 100 crores were spent on Messi India Tour and none were willing to come forward to bail out AIFF to conduct tournaments.

The onus lies on the AIFF key officials to have a crystal-clear policy to generate funds for the development of football in the country. People will surely come forward to contribute provided there is transparency and good governance.

ENDS