As the sun moves westward, more and more players with basketballs in their hands walk in. The scene is unbelievably exciting. First, it is the turn of students from class IV onwards. Parminder Singh Bubby, who has played basketball at the higher level, is coaching the younger lot. He blows the whistle to make the players line up. They take turns as he provides opportunity to all youngsters to play at least one full game. As the sun melts away, floodlights are switched on. The youngest of the lot start returning to their homes.
Age no bar
Next is the turn of college students and their fellow mates from the village to practice. In suffocating humid conditions, players sweat profusely, but the coach is a tough guy. He is not prepared to provide them even with a second to make them breathe easy. It is 9 pm and time to wind up the action. The coach blows a long whistle and directs the players to cool-off. After that comes the turn of the village elders to have a go at the ball. One is surprised to see 60-year-olds playing basketball, a tough game that requires loads of stamina and fitness.
They are not shy to challenge the youngsters to test their game skills. “Schoolboys and girls come to the ground at 3 pm and start warming up. They start playing at 3.30 pm and return home early,” says Parminder Singh.
It is not an exaggeration to say that basketball has become a way of life for residents of the village. The evening bursts into life in a different manner here. Most village residents, especially men, spend their evenings on the school compound. The sport activity that begins at 3 pm continues till 10 pm.
This sport has not only metamorphosed the village, but has also paid rich dividends to its residents. A large number of youths, who have played at the state, national and inter-university levels, have got employment in the Army, Navy, Punjab Police, BSF, CISF and other paramilitary forces. They are playing members of various teams. “We do not have the exact count because we have not maintained a record, but we can say with certainty that in recent years, about 60-70 youths from our village have got jobs in various government organisations,” says Labh Singh, a former sarpanch, who the laid the foundation of the game in the village years ago. He had played the game at the senior level in the 1980s.
The major gain from this sport is that it keeps the youth away from intoxicants. “Unlike other parts of the Malwa region, we don’t have drug problems in our village,” says Ram Singh, a BKU leader associated with the game. “Most youths of our village are focused on basketball,” he says.
“Our aim is not to make big achievements. The main objective is to provide the villagers with an atmosphere of entertainment, keep them fit and engaged in the evening and also keep them away from intoxicants,” says Gurdeep Singh, president of the village basketball club. “But achievements by our players at various levels are a natural outcome,” he adds.
At least 30 youths have been recruited by the Army. They play for various teams of the Army. Some girls of the village, who practice at the Basketball Academy, Ludhiana, have also done well. “There is no college in the area where our boys are not playing members in the basketball team. Some years ago, all playing members of the college teams, which remained at the first and second places in Punjabi University, were from our village,” he says. The first playing five members were from the village in the under-17 team that represented Punjab at the national level.
“We have gotten our boys admitted to colleges in faraway places like Gurdaspur and Ludhiana so they can play in the teams of various colleges and universities,” says the coach. “If we keep them confined to the college in our area, only a few of them would be able to play at the next level,” he points out.
Steady course
There is a history behind the emergence of basketball as a sport in the village. In the 1980s, the village school team played with another team at Behman Dewana. Though it gave the team a tough fight in the final, it lost the match. “We lost because all coaches and umpires supported our rival team. Next year, we entered the tournament with full preparation, but were defeated again because the umpires were biased,” claims Labh Singh, who used to play then. “We then decided to set up basketball courts at our school to prepare national-level players,” he says.
Decades ago, Sansarpur, a tiny village on the outskirts of Jalandhar, remained in the limelight for producing many star players for Indian hockey. Hockey remains a favourite sport at Sansarpur, but its popularity has declined. Bhaini Bagha has not reached that level, but its mission to keep the youth engaged in constructive activity is as big as Sansarpur’s achievements in hockey.
There is little support from the outside for the endeavour. Vijay Kumar Singla, an advocate, BKU leader Ram Singh, police officer Hardial Singh Mann, Yurinder Singh Hayer, Gautam Cheema, Mukhtiar Singh Dahia, IAS officer Raji P Srivastava and coach Gaj Singh have been supporting the village on their own. The state government has not extended any help.
Residents want to take this transformation of the village to an even higher level. “The government is planning to allot sports wings to villages to promote sports. We want a wing to be allotted to us. Our panchayat led by sarpanch Jasbir Kaur has passed a resolution to give 10-acre panchayat land for setting up the wing. The panchayat has also met the authorities concerned in this regard. Keeping in view our contribution to the sport and the atmosphere we have build over the years in the village, we deserve such a wing,” says Labh Singh.
“If we get a sports wing, it will further promote the game not only in our village, but also in the neighbouring villages,” says Gurdeep Singh.
