Editor,
India crashed out of the Cricket World Cup 2015 in the semi-finals and its World Cup dreams died at the Sydney Cricket ground. MS Dhoni ‘s lot had sailed full speed into the semi finals but here it bumped into an opponent simply superior and faltered. No doubt there was anguish in the multitude of Indian Cricket fans, but then we cannot expect to win always and we should be comforted with the knowledge that we lost after all to a formidable opponent and a giant sporting nation . Australia is usually high up the ladder in the medal count in many sports disciplines be it in the Olympics , in World Championships and in the Commonwealth Games. It participated in the FIFA World Cup finals on more than one occasion . Now it is again the World champion in Cricket for the fifth time after winning the 2015 World Cup final. Given that Australia has a population of only around 23 million people , these achievements are attributed to a strong sporting culture. and on generous funding by the Australian government into sports development with a balanced emphasis on all sports and with the specific intention of improving performance in all competitions..
India with 1.2 billion people has the potential to become a giant sporting nation too provided equal attention is given to sports other than cricket which is not even an Olympic sport and has limited appeal in the international sporting arena. While it is claimed that cricket is very popular in India, often the poor crowd attendance in local cricket matches and the low proliferation of established cricket playing clubs in the country belie the popularity concept. But television, commercialization and the advertising world in India have promoted cricket to an extent that it makes the cricket bastion absolutely impregnable and personalities are created out of persons in this sport by a hyper-ventilated media. Hence other sports persons in India with dazzling achievements are accustomed to getting eclipsed in a cricket-obsessed India. For example, Vishwanathan Anand who is among the best chess players in the modern era is as big, if not a bigger achiever than Tendulkar. But, as cricketers hog most of the Indian media space, Anand’s fame in many countries exceeds his recognition in India. In spite of India having won 8 Olympics gold medals in hockey, this sport and its sportspersons do not get the media attention they deserve. The recent achievements of the Indian women Hockey team after it won the Hero Hockey World League Round 2 was not highlighted in the Indian Television English news channel because India beating Zimbabwe and then Bangla Desh in the World Cup Cricket hogged all the limelight, overlooking the fact that we could easily beat these countries in hockey too. Now that Saina Nehwal is the world number one in Women’s Badminton it remains to be seen as to whether the Indian media will continue to project her while in her prime or after so that like Tendulkar she will also be a sport icon for the people of India.
The next Cricket World Cup will take place in 2019. Before that we have a major international sporting event which is the 2016 summer Olympics at Brazil where the Indian men hockey team and our sportspersons in other disciplines will participate. Then we have the under 17 FIFA World Cup tournament in 2017 where India as a host country will participate . There will be many other significant world sporting events before and between these .The Indian media will make a great contribution in improving Indian sports if they also focus on these sporting events and on our sportspersons who will participate in these events.
While appreciating the growth of Cricket in India let us take inspiration from this and allow other sports to grow too and let sportspersons from other fields have equal opportunities, adequate earnings and undivided affections as well. Then only will India grow in sports. For this to happen the media, particularly the Indian television news media has a big role to play.
Yours etc.,
K.L.Tariang,
Via email
NGT violation & police corruption
Editor,
Media reports of NGT ban violations are throwing up some puzzling questions. For instance, we have been reading of the daily seizure of several trucks and corresponding arrests since the past few months. This implies that the police have already seized several hundred illegal coal trucks and arrested at least double that number of people (drivers and handymen) by now. So where are all these seized trucks being parked? Obviously they are being held out of sight somewhere, because we are unable to see them anywhere. We also do not hear much about the fate of the seized coal after the actual seizure. Our lockups and jails should have been bursting at the seams with so many arrests but surprisingly, this is not the case. Can the Police tell us where the arrested people are being held? What cases have been registered against them? What has happened to the seized coal? I sincerely hope it has not been smuggled back to its original owners in the dead of night!
The most important question that begs asking is – WHY IS NO ACTION BEING TAKEN AGAINST MINE OWNERS for illegal mining and transportation? Why arrest only the small fry, the drivers and handymen, unless the police is not serious about fighting this crime? Is it because, as everyone suspects, the police are firmly on the coal mafia’s payroll and enjoy Vincent Pala’s blessing? As of now, illegal mining and transportation of coal is going on unabated with the Police Dept’s full cooperation. NGT must investigate the role of the Police, especially the district SPs in the coal mining districts. Asset scrutiny of police officers posted in the mining districts must be conducted from time to time. Too many cops are getting rich through illegal means in Jaintia Hills. Even junior officers posted in the coal belts return to Shillong laden with enough loot to buy several prime properties in the city!
The DGP is an old Meghalaya hand and ex-Intelligence officer, who is perfectly aware of everything that goes on in his turf. He needs to come out with a statement about why police corruption is only being winked at by the higher-ups in the State. We all know that the cover up of P J Marbaniang , the murdered police officer who took on his superiors and the coal mafia and came to a bad end, is well under way. The guilty will never be brought to book unless the matter is handed over to CBI. Shouldn’t Mehta hand over the case to CBI, in the interest of fair play and justice? In the hands of local police officials, it is only a matter of time before the case is given a quiet burial.
Yours etc.,
Edwin Marak
Shillong -1