What exactly wonder kid Budhia and her mother want from the StateIJ
Keeping the boy’s talent and the family’s poverty in view, the State Government took all expenditure and admitted him in a public school, besides lodging him at the SAI sports hostel here. The Government has been paying Budhia’s studies as well his sports career.
Despite all the facilities, Budhia’s mother Sukanti Singh often goes to the media and makes allegation of negligence. How many children in the State get such facilities as Budhia enjoys from the childhoodIJ
Now, the boy as well as his mother has been complaining that he is not getting adequate training to make Budhia of international level. This apart, Budhia’s mother also complains that the boy is not feeling comfortable at the sports hostel.
It should be noted that the SAI hostel certainly provides a better atmosphere for a sports person than the Salia Sahi slum where Budhia’s mother has been staying.
However, the coaches at the sports hostel in Bhubaneswar have meanwhile earned praise from across the country for producing talents like Dutee Chand, Srabani Nanda, Amiya Mallick and many others.
Budhia not returning to the hostel after summer vacation and skipping his classes at the DAV Public School, Chandrasekharpur, where he is a class IX student, are the issues that raised doubts on whether the wonder kid is getting proper support from the Government or not.
“We have sent two notices to his address. Besides, four coaches have gone to his home in Saliasahi to find out where he is, but they couldn’t,” said Rupanwita Panda, Budhia’s coach and in-charge of the hostel.
“When he did not meet the date, I wrote a letter to Budhia on June 23, asking him to return to the sports hostel within a week. As I did not get a reply of my letter which I had sent through post, I wrote another letter and sent four coaches of the sports hostel to hand over the letter to Budhia at Salia Sahi. But the coaches did not find Budhia in his house, while his sister informed the coaches that Budhia has gone to the village and will return within four days. But till date, he has not reported to me,” she said.
Budhia was sent home for summer vacations on May 10 and was supposed to return to the hostel on June 7. While the phone of his mother, Sukanti Singh, was switched off, his sister said that Budhia and his mother had gone to their maternal uncle’s house in Nayagarh district and they are likely to return by July 28.
“Budhia Singh’s mother had told a local news channel that they are in Nayagarh. We are expecting him to return to sports hostel in two to four days,” Sports and Youth Affairs Secretary Saswat Mishra told reporters following local media report that the boy was missing.
“All that I am getting to run in the hostel is a measly 1,500 meters. I’m being told to improve my speed by my coach, but I don’t know how far it would help me. I don’t like running sprints, but that’s what I am being asked to,” Budhia had alleged earlier.
Elaborating further on what kind of training he required, Budhia said it was career as a marathon runner.
“I want specialized coaching for marathon running. I believe that I’m born to run marathons. Even now, I can run for more hours without getting tired. I’m neither getting the required coaching nor the food. I get just about 3 to 4 pieces of chicken, while I was being fed more by Biranchi Sir when I was four years old. I feel like I’m in a jail. I want to leave the hostel,” he had then complained.