India is socially far behind many developed countries. Women are still subjected to rapes, acid throwing, child marriages, lack of education, no equal status in society, so on and so forth. Social reforms are moving at a fast pace but I wish we could follow them up in our day to day life. Education is one pillar in this direction. We have to make women 100 per cent literate.
| Sonia Gandhi, Sushma Swaraj, Meira Kumar, Jayalalithaa and Mamata Banerjee are far better than any male politician in the country |
Also, we lack political awareness. For this, we have to encourage more women to join politics. The government must guarantee education for women. According to me, Sonia Gandhi, Sushma Swaraj, Meira Kumar, Jayalalithaa, Mamata Banerjee are far better than any male politician in the country.
We should have a government which ensures that there is no dearth of security for women. That there is less sycophancy, equality for all and no corruption in the society, irrespective of caste, creed and sex.
When it comes to sport, it’s a very fragile subject. Everyone here wants to either become an IAS, IPS, a doctor or an engineer. Nobody opts for sports.
I have often been inquired about my education. For me, sports and education do not go hand in hand. When I refuse to disclose my education, they blame it on sport. When I say I am a manager with Bharat Petroleum Corporation, nobody believes me. They think I am just joking.
Why this opinion? Is putting in six to seven hours of regular practice every day for the whole year not equal to graduation? Why aren’t we given equal degrees? Why is a job guarantee not equal to a graduate in civil services? We have to pay attention to these aspects.
Many a time, we are not even given prize money on time. Announcements are made but in reality, there is often no reward. How do you expect sports to progress?
Sports must be given ample support and sportsperson a social status, else we will end up being a bunch of losers.
My solution to this problem is focus on grassroots level. Select 50 girls and boys between the age group of 8 and 10 in any sport. Support them financially and morally and see their progress in the next two to three years.
Select 20 from that lot and provide them with all facilities and good coaches in world class academies like that of Gopichand sir for badminton. I am sure at least four out of the 20 will be extraordinary. Provide benefits like social cadre and money to the rest. India will definitely succeed in sports.
As told to N Jagannath Das
