Times of India: Pargat’s stick therapy: Hockey high, nasha bye

A conversation with his father made him realize the gravity of drug problem in Punjab & he decided to fight for the amlis’ lives with the hockey stick

In 2004 when former Indian hockey captain Pargat Singh, one of India’s best full backs and the only player in the world who captained his country twice in Olympics, had come home to his village -Mithapur -he made a startling discovery. During a casual chat with his father Gurdev Singh, Pargat found out that several young boys in their village had turned amlis (addicts).

“Though we all knew that the (drug) problem existed in Punjab, but it was that conversation with my father which came as a shocker. I realized the problem was far bigger as my father started taking names of villagers whose young boys had turned towards nasha. This shook me up from inside and I decided to face the dark reality staring at my village,” Pargat recalls.

The same evening he called some village youths and asked them to gather kids between the ages of 12 to 14. “There were around 40 kids and the next morning we started cleaning the stadium, which had by then become a haven for drug users. We started coming across syringes, and when this cleaning operation ended we had two bags full of syringes,” says Pargat.

“I then requested a prominent farmer of our village to send tractors and level the stadium. Within two days our stadium was ready,” adds the fiery man, who was serving as a special secretary in Punjab government’s department of sports in 2004.

In 2016, it’s evident that Pargat’s endeavour has brought results. During the recent Champions Trophy, where India bagged a silver medal, Mithapur had three players in the national squad. One player from the village also finds a place the Indian junior hockey team.

“Drugs were a big problem in our village. Gradually, after our fervent efforts, the youth has re turned to hockey and other sports,” Pargat remarks with a glint in his eye.

The change didn’t happen in Mithapur alone, but also in neighbouring village Sansarpur – which was once called the nursery of Indian hockey. During the 1968 Mexico Olympics, 7 hockey players – five in the Indian team and two in Kenyan national team – from the village were part of the Games.

But by the nineties, Sansarpur had lost its glory. “From 1990 to 2004, Sansarpur didn’t have a single player in the Indian national team,” Pargat says with a sense of dismay.

Sansarpur and another neighbouring village Kukkar Pind were next in Pargat’s agenda. He systematically earmarked the villages, which were once known to produce hockey players in a bunch, where the drug problem had to be addressed. Both Sansarpur and Kukkar Pind now have their own six-a-side astro turfs.

After his appointment as director sports by the Punjab government in 2005, Pargat started working at micro as well as macro level. In fact, his functioning as director sports matched his style of play. During his playing days, Pargat – who was a defender would often join the forward line and score goals. He used to do that when the team was lagging behind.

As a government officer, he once again led from the front and started reversing the losses. He got eight full size and 25 six-a-side astro turfs laid during his term. “I simply revived the pockets in Punjab where hockey was played in the past and where the craze still existed, albeit at a subtle level,” he said.

The result was there for everyone to see. Till recently (starting of 2016), there were 18 players from Punjab in the national senior and junior hockey teams. In the upcoming Rio Olympics, the Indian team has five players from Punjab.
“I got advisors, all former sportspersons, who were enthusiastic to work for the revival of hockey and sports in general in the state. Their mandate was to focus on expansion of the sport, equipments and diet of a budding player. We ensured that everything remained fair, including selection processes (adds with a chuckle), and soon we started getting results,” reflects Pargat.

Former chief election commissioner of India Dr M S Gill, who was also the Union sports minister between 2009 and 2011, had once asked Pargat how he managed to get 25 six-a-side astro turfs in Punjab and from where did he get so much funding.

Pargat replied, “I made shorts out of a worn out trouser.” This answer left Dr Gill stunned and sought an explanation. Par gat went on to add, “I got four small turfs made out of one big turf, which were old and needed replacement. All this cost me just Rs 30 lakhs.” Pargat’s wit and street-smart attitude left Dr Gill enamoured and he tried to implement the idea in other hockey pockets of the country.

4 goals in 6 minutes:

During the 1985 Champions Trophy match between India and Germany at Perth, Australia, India was down 1-5 at one point of time. Then a teenaged Pargat Singh came to the forward line from the defensive half and scored four goals in the last six minutes. The result was a draw.

Paucity of goalkeepers:

Pargat says there was a paucity of goalkeepers before he took up the director’s post in the sports department. “A goalies kit would cost Rs 12,000. As most hockey players were from lower middle class or poor families, it was difficult for them to purchase equipment. So the department bought 200 kits and distributed them among the players,” he said.

Have Always been a rebel:

Pargat Singh openly criticized the functioning of former Punjab director general of police K P S Gill, who headed the now-defunct Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) for nearly two decades. He was particularly vocal after Gill appointed a swimming coach as assistant manager and a thrower as selector of the Indian hockey team. Pargat also confronted Suresh Kalmadi, the former president of Indian Olympic Association (IOA), several times. “I wonder why they didn’t utilize my capabilities as a tried and tested sports administrator at the national level, in IOA or the IHF. It was a matter of state than any personal grudge. May be, I was too outspoken for them,” quips Pargat with a smile.

Taking a leaf out of others:

As he was framing the sports policy for Punjab he studied blueprints of other countries like China, Germany, Australia and United States. “Though they had some differences but crux of every policy was the three tier model – quantity, quality and then super quality. The most remarkable example was set by China which emerged as the largest medal winner in 2008. China engaged 4.5 lakh coaches and each would train 200 students, which meant nine crore students playing. From nine crore, nine lakh were selected and then nine thousand for chosen for special coaching. China also started giving marks for sports and gradually things improved. They also diverted the health budget to sports. As a result, the general health of people improved by promoting sports. In fact, the average height of Chinese people increased by 2.5 inches,” Pargat stated.

`70% youth aren’t addicts’:

Drugs is a major problem in Punjab. Pargat does acknowledge the fact, but he feels the reality is in the middle of exaggeration and denial. “Well, let me tell you the reality is somewhere in the middle of exaggeration and denial. It’s (drug problem) there in Punjab and one can’t deny it, but it is also wrong to say that 70% of Punjab youth are amlis (addicts),” states Pargat. Why is the youth then getting attracted to drugs?

“There are several reasons for it. The biggest is the lack of hardship. The youth these days get everything on a platter. So they have become easy going. They shirk gruelling training schedules. What I find missing in most of them is determination and tenacity,” Pargat says. And how to solve the problem? “By getting the youth back to sports is a way to tackle the mess. That will channelize their energy,” asserts Pargat.