It’s not bad scenario at domestic level altogether, despite National Championship not being held for so many years. There are good news here and there

Close on the heels of MCC- Murugappa Cup sponsors announcing reasonable prize-money hike in the annual event, two domestic organizers improved their websites by leap and bounds.

For long only Jalandhar based Surjit Hockey Tournament Society was the loner to have a dedicated website for any domestic tournamnet in India (www.surjithockey.in)

Nehru Hockey society, which orgnizes a series of hockey tournaments dot on fixed dates every year, started one of its own a couple of years back, but somehow did not get the bottomline correct. The old site seemed replica of their annual souvenir program on the monitor, in the sense that it was mundane in content and appearance

Not now — and we thank those behind the revamp for the good job done.

The site (www.nehruhockey.com), online nowadays, gives a whiff of fresh air. It contains all the basic info on the society, laid out in a pleasing layout, besides offering a sinew of other useful features. By design and content, this site should be satisfying to the sponsors, who are genuine and many for the tournament.

Particularly of interest is the 15-minute video of its activities, anchored by Anupam Ghulati, though seemed to have been shot years back, present nicely the Society’s glorious officials and former players (but only Delhi based) offering their views on the role of the society.

Shiv Kumar Varma, the veritable Pankaj Gupta of Nehru Hockey — he is founder secretary and still going strong – looks back inter alia the foreword former FIH president els van Breda Vriesman gave for the Nehru Society’s Souvenir program as the greatest certificate for their work. How true

Hearing and seeing such stalwarts of hockey as Olympians Nandy Singh, Harbinder Singh, Ashok Kumar, Aslam sher Khan, Jafar Iqbal, Aslam Sher Khan and the like is an experience in itself, a right step to perpetuate the memory of these greats.

Of course, obvious miss in the list is KG Kakkar, who as Joint Secretary of Society saw the development of the organization from the scratch.

We ferverently hope the site keeps growing, adds many features keep visitors coming to the site as often as possible.

We also ferverently appeal to those concerned that at least half a dozen souls spent their lifetime to create this institution of what it is today. They always kept the organization in the front, while themsevles hiding from personal publicity. Against this speck of history, we feel necessary to strike a word of caution. Not any single or couple of officials should attempt to hijack the site with his or their photos prominently. It will be antithesis of the Society’s traditional values. GenNext should take this word of caution as a mark of respect to the GenOld which is actually GenGold.