Bilkisganj/Sehore (Madhya Pradesh): The September welkins over the Bilkisganj hamlet in Sehore district were unusually cloudy last year.
A teacher in a government-run primary school in the village Rajkumar Parmar stood near a field in the early morning shadows.
He was silently watching a youth teaching five children how to run in a competition.
Just as the training was over, Rajkumar spoke to the youth. He came to know that he was Jitendra Parmar, an NCC cadet.
That was how it all began. And the rest is a yarn with ups and downs. Their friendship gave birth to an institution – Youth Sports Academy.
It was barely easy to run such an academy at the outset. As the institution did not take a single penny from any student and as a few girls took part in sports activities, the villagers were suspicious about the intentions of Rajkumar and Jitendra.
But for a few, most of the villagers avoided sending their children to the academy. A few even objected to running it.
Both Rajkumar and Jitendra thought whether they should run the institution.
They stuck to their guns against all odds. Things changed, but slowly.
Many students have won medals in various competitions held in the district and in the state. Both Jitendra and Rajkumar helped each other. They have bought sports kits for the children on their own. Now, the academy has over 100 students.
Rajkumar said that there was none to finance the institution, but he is happy that locals have at least agreed to send their children to them.
Now, the nondescript Bilkisganj village has cut a swath for itself in sports because of the academy, said villagers.
Two of its students won gold and silver in the recently held Talent Search Contest in Bhopal.
The youths, Mukesh Barela and Raja Verma, won a gold medal and a silver medal in the competition.
Barela won the gold in 400 metres race and Verma the silver in100m race. Both Barela and Verma said it was possible only because of the Youth Sports Academy.
Eighteen students including Barela and Verma, have, so far, won gold and silver in various competitions.
The yarn of the academy, however, does not end there. Three of its students have passed the physical tests conducted by the Indian Army and the Delhi Police.
Bharat Parmar, who is set to join the Delhi Police in November, said that he was selected because of the hard training that he underwent in the academy.
The academy admits the students belonging to all classes and communities. Yet both Rajkumar and Jitendra focus on the children of poor families, villagers say.
Barela said that he had joined the academy eight months ago wishing to serve the Indian Army. Verma has been associated with it since the academy was set up in September last year.
According to Jitendra, they train the students from 5:30 am to 7:30 am.
Jitendra is a strict disciplinarian. He does not allow anyone to remain absent on flimsy grounds. As far as shining in the horizon of sports goes, the girls are not behind the boys.
They, too, have won medals in various competitions in the district. Suhana Qureshi, Neetu Barela, Muskan Sastya, Arushi Sastya and Anjali Malvi, have cut a corner for themselves.
Many girls in the academy yearn for joining MP Police, the girls said.
They also inch for earning a name for the state and for the country in sports. Both the teachers are highly disciplined and tell the students to remain so, the girls said.
According to Rajkumar, girls’ security is on their priority. Once a group of students are trained, they impart training to others. Even on foggy winter mornings, both of them come out of their warm quilts. So do the children.
At times lack of resources tweaks them, Jitendra said.
Yet that becomes immaterial when a student wins a medal, as that keeps us smiling, Jitendra added.
