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THE TRIBAL GIRLS FROM INDIAN STATE OF JHARKHAND  How the hell is this not big news to be proud of, how did it go under the radar ? Instead of this we have news of Salman n Shah Rukh, just entertainers, hugging ..grrrrrrrr Few days back, as a billion plus India slept, a handful of tribal girls proudly held aloft a trophy they won in their maiden entry in a football tournament in far-flung Spain. It was the night of July 13. Hundreds of fire crackers lit the skies as the girls screamed Vande Mataram – their battle cry – for being placed third in the Gasteiz Cup, the world’s best testing ground for football in Victoria Gastiez, also popular as Europe’s Green Capital. They were the same girls who were slapped, kicked and made to sweep floors by arrogant bureaucrats in Jharkhand when the girls asked for birth certificates, a necessity to apply for passports. But they eventually managed their passports, thanks to a strapping American, Franz Gastler, who pushed the cases of the girls with mandarins of the Ministry of External Affairs in the Indian Capital. He was a lone ranger in his efforts. The girls were lovingly titled the Supergoats by the organizers in Spain the moment they saw the girls playing barefoot in practice matches on arrival. Why? The girls had limited football gear and could not take the risk of tampering it before the tournament. They were overawed by international teams in the first tournament, the Donosti Cup, but came to their own in the second tournament. Offering a consolation prize for the third team – winner of a match between losing semi-finalists – was a mere formality for the organizers. But for the girls, it was a giant leap into global soccer from their impoverished Rukka village near Ranchi, considered one of the world’s epicenters of marriage and human trafficking. As soon as the announcement was made for the prize distribution ceremony, the girls rushed into their dressing room and returned, some barefoot, wearing red-bordered white saris, their traditional festive dress. Many had their plastic flowers in their hairs. And when they huddled together after the mandatory photo session, some wept inconsolably because they had almost given up their hopes to participate in this tournament. “They were over the moon. It was their night,” said Gastler of the girls, who subsist on less than a dollar a day. For a country low on soccer, this was - arguably - good news for the mandarins of the game. But no one cared. All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Praful Patel was not aware of the girls’ superlative achievement, nor was the country’s new sports minister Jitendra Singh. “We could not sleep that night (July 13),” says Rinky Kumari, 13, captain, Supergoats. Once she bunked her school helped her mother do household chores. Today, thanks to football, everyone knows her name in the village. She says she remembered the days she was slapped and sweep floors when she went to the Panchayat Office get birth certificates for her passport. “That is the pain of being a tribal girl in India. I do not remember the slap, I remember the Cup,” says Rinky. For her, and her teammates, it means a lot. I, AN INDIAN, WITH NO STATE AFFILIATION BUT SETTLED DOWN IN SIKKIM, AM PROUD OF YOU AND YOUR TEAM MATES, RINKY !! "To fight the darkness do not draw your sword, light a candle" - Zarathustra |
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8/4/2013 8:50 am |
A wonderful story! Man now joins clubs for the same reasons he once carried them! - Rod McKuen
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8/4/2013 10:01 am |
Sounds like excellent material for a movie. Spiritwoman ^i^
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What an uplifting story!
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I agree with grandbluff!!! What persistence, and yes...bravery these girls have!!!
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Many thanks Everyone.  The point here is that there are more hurdles that need to be negotiated by sports persons in the form of bureaucracy of various kinds in our kind of environment which prevails in many countries around the world. The achievement is laudable, indeed, and all of you, My friends, have added to the joy of these young ladies who finally made it to the national TV on 06 August 2013 when the whole team of 'Supergoats' was showcased. It was now that the obstructionist officialdom were vying with each to be on the idiot box. The Blog would be incomplete if I was not to record the appreciation that many of us have for the efforts of Mr Franz Gastler who took it upon himself to see the fight that these girls put up through, to a success, to stage their great escape to achievement in the face of the shameless bureaucracy. Many thanks again - Jhtllthj - welcome to my blog. MrsJoe - many thanks. SpiritGirl - it indeed is excellent movie material.  Abelle - many thanks - your observation is totally agreed with. GrandBluff - it, indeed, is a triumph of the human spirit and will. RocketShip - you, My friend, are always supportive of good things. ThatBillGuy - many thanks Bill. Jace2012 - welcome to my blog, Jace. many thanks. Thanks yet again - I was able to speak to two of the girls; one was the team captain. All your good wishes and 'well dones' have been conveyed to them which the Team Captain and the other young lady gratefully acknowledge. So, Bill, my Friend, your wish has been fulfilled - thanks for the suggestion. Have a wonderful day, Everyone. "To fight the darkness do not draw your sword, light a candle" - Zarathustra
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