Players’ issues need to be addressed with free and frank mind

Editorial: Now that the Indian players have spoken their mind, it is time to address their grievances.

To address the grievances of players means, it is a right step to improve the lot of not only players but also hockey in general.

The players in Pune are not demanding what is not due to them. Their demands are genuine. It is not time to waste energy on who is behind, how to victimize, and find scapegoats and such pettiness. Better don’t waster energy there.

What players in essence want is recognition of their work which they translate in monetary terms.

Therefore, it is better to put in place a system of payment to players. This is a long pending issue, the current adminos should think they got an opportunity to solve this.

City Limouzines, who sponsored women hockey team for three years, showed the way.

They directly paid 60 percent of their sponsorship amount to players, the rest to Federation. There was a gradational system, and coaches also got a pie for some time under this scheme.

Similarly, the Sahara should make a monthly payment to short-listed Indian players, seniors, Juniors and other age groups. This should be applicable to women hockey players also. They are also in the same boat as that of their men counterparts.

From January to August 2004, Sahara paid each Indian team player Rs. 30,000 per month. Without going into the details why the scheme was dispensed away with, now the scheme ought to be introduced.

As government bears most of the tour expenses, it is incumbent upon Hockey India to spare substantial part of Sahara sponsorship deal (Rs. 2.5 cr per annum) to players.

Then, grade tournaments and test series, and then work out a Performance Based Monetary reward. Perhaps on the same lines of Government of India’s incentives in this respect.

Almost all Indian players are employed. The situation for them now is, if they play for India they stand to lose monetarily. Because, those players who play for the department in various domestic tournaments earn more than their colleagues in the national camps. Because, Hockey India does not pay any daily allowance but only Sports Authority of India which is a meager, whereas the department pays its players on domestic tourney five to six times more.

So it is better not to trivialize the things, and go for the solution. Generation of players have suffered for lack of a system by which their hard work is recognized. Charity type of things, as has been happening for long, has to stop, system has to step in. Earlier the better for Indian hockey.