One Man Army at Amritsar Campuses

31/12/2008

He is a one man army, trying to rescue a sport affected by a tsunami like calamity. What Prof. Paramjit Singh Randhawa does is worth taking note of if not worth emulating.

Like most Indians, Randhawa too wants to improve hockey. But he does not just sit and worry about hockey and its future.

He calls up school authorities and motivates them to do something for hockey. He briefs them patiently about the values and history of hockey, and throws ideas open to them, as to what schools can do for hockey.

Impressed and concerned, most of the schools he approaches willingly come forward to start a hockey team. He guides them in these efforts.

Most of these schools invite him to the morning prayer-session, where he delivers a speech in front of thousands of school children, fresh in their mind, like the morning sky.

With good articulation in Punjabi, Professor Randhawa talks about hockey with simple facts that children can easily understand. He mostly concentrates on how India won so many Golds even when the country was under British Rule. How a simple soldier like Dhyan Chand went on to lead India to a grand legacy, and more such stories of inspiration.

With his oratory skills, he endears students and the teaching community alike, and they express their willingness to take up the game, with school authorities providing basic equipment like sticks and balls.

In the next session, a group of willing children are again assembled, where Professor Randhawa give simple instructions on techniques of hockey.

Physical Education Teachers then carry on the good work and work to improve the skills of children.

Prof. Randhawa so far has lectured about 20 schools in the holy city of Amritsar alone.

"I got very good response in every school I’ve visited so far. I am really surprised why not many have tried approaching school. Most schools, once explained about the National Game, are willing to take hockey sport seriously. Children too do not have any reservation of any sort to delve into the game", says Randhawa with a tinge of satisfaction.

Prof. Randhawa is one of the committed volunteers of Hockey Citizen Group, which is implementing the novel scheme of ‘One Thousand Hockey Legs’.