What’s the story?
Former Indian international hockey player Ajit Pal Nandal adopted 21 girl students from the local government school at his native place on Wednesday with the noble intention of moulding their career paths. He claims that he was inspired by Gautam Gambhir who decided to bear the educational expenses of the children of the 24 slain CRPF personnel who were killed during the Maoist attack in Sukma on April 24.
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The context
Nandal, who hails from the Bohar village of Rohtak district, Haryana stated that he will be taking care of expenses related to education, sports training, equipment and tournament fees for these girls, ranging from grades VI to XI. He would also be training them in the sport and taking care of their expenditure till they clear their grade XII board exams.
The heart of the matter
The girls, belonging to the same village as Nandal, were identified based on their performance in academics and sports and their humble backgrounds by the local school. Nandal also runs a state-of-the-art gymnasium and stud farm in Rohtak. He has further invited other girl students from the school who take an interest in sports training to avail the facilities of his gymnasium free of cost. He is currently a co-member of a Task Force put together by Prime Minister Narendra Modi that is aiming to improve India’s performance for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.
The adoption was announced during an event in school that was presided over by the Rohtak SP Pankaj Nain as the chief guest. Nain encouraged the involvement of girls in sports and went on to say that girls have tremendous potential and just needed to be given opportunities for their talents to be discovered and guided on the right path.
He added that the district police authorities have adopted Bohar which is considered a crime-prone village, to ensure that the youth are headed in a positive direction.
What’s next?
Nandal, who has also adopted five boys who play hockey, is attempting to rope in more sportspersons and sponsors in a bid to further the adoption of local children and increasing their chances of having a brighter future. He is already in conversation with Rio Olympic 2016 Bronze medalist, Sakshi Malik regarding the same.
Author’s take
Such admirable actions go a long way in ensuring better lives for the innumerable children in our country that are unable to reach and maximise their potential due to lack of infrastructure.
Not only is Nandal helping these well-deserved children out, but he is also ensuring that sportspersons from diverse backgrounds get to represent this country. This reflects the values of inclusion that the sports industry is based upon.
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