For the first time in 44 years of history, India is the Asian Athletics Champion with 12 gold, five silver and 12 bronze medals. Regular winners China, Japan and the recently-born Kazakhstan have been pushed below, beyond belief.
India bid for the 2017 Asian Athletics Championships and got it. The venue chosen then was Ranchi in Jharkhand. Everybody had expected the Ranchi show to be one of the best because the Union and the State Governments were led by the same colossal, extremely efficient and universally popular BJP. The going would be monumental and resources would flow immeasurably. Amit Shah as BJP president and Modi as PM would work wonders. Jharkhand is mineral and forest-rich and money would be available from a number of State and corporate organisations. The legendary Tatas became world-famous industrialists in Jharkhand only (it was part of Bihar then). So, multiple sources of help and support in all forms including the routine Central and international grants could have turned Ranchi a global destination. The BJP too would have taken maximum advantage in being branded a more likeable party. But no one clearly knows why Jharkhand lost wits and raised arms in a shameful surrender at the last moment. They had begun preparing for over a year, but BJP planners, all on a sudden, lost wits, skills and self-confidence to go ahead. At the eleventh hour, they screamed ‘We can’t do it’. More astonishing was that no other efficient BJP Government dared take up the task to save India’s face.
Very interestingly, Odisha, religiously belittled as a perpetually poverty–stricken region by PM Modi, sprang to feet and picked the herculean task merrily without a second thought. The time in hand was as little as three months. Naveen Patnaik declared coolly the small job would bring more pride to Odisha and provoked his frontline functionaries to give their best to prove Odisha could do it. The rest is known history. But the hurting fact is that Modi and other Union Ministers purposefully looked away imagining Odisha would fail and shame as they sling at the State would fall in place post the Asian event. All BJP biggies, both central and regional, conspicuously remained unseen at the scene of action as if it was an enemy party’s show, not one of the whole nation! Around this time, Amit Shah leaped across all barriers of decency to have his photos installed, pasted or hung at punishably wrong locations to divert public attention from athletics to mean politics. As per law, those publicity objects had to be removed by the authorities just to put up an acceptable display of civility. local BJP organisers, nay sycophants, lost all commonsense and placed a huge number of party flags fluttering at the airport only to obscure the national flags of all foreign participants, already put up on poles in a mark of most respectful welcome. During the event dates, the Prime Minster, a compulsive traveller, flew away to Israel, most probably to learn drip irrigation techniques, perhaps because Gujarat is known for chronic dry spells and tourist–distracting deserts. Amit Shah timed some cheap voter-buying sprees in some parts of Odisha around this time and kept hopping from one Dalit home to another, guided by Jual Oram, to share humble meals with helpless inmates. He could not recognise the Asian event as India’s; he avoided it as a parochial show of Odisha. local Shah-sycophants worked overdrive to remain away from the great event. Dharmendra Pradhan promised to appear at the closing show only but vanished in thin air at the momentous time.
India bagged the top position in the e vent. Modi or his colleagues never made any proud media statements for the country’s victory. local BJP lawmakers did not even attend the grand show despite all respectable arrangements. To top the shameful act of abandonment, BJP bosses seemed to have frightened the Odisha Governor so badly that he too hid himself on some silly plea or the other right in town. His Excellency forgot the constitutional duty of leading the show as the head of a federal State. The BJP ignored an international event without any remorse. The blame game is not yet over as one gets to see and read in the media.
BJP leaders feel extremely hurt to praise a job done well by fellow Indians, which is horribly bad politics.
Union Sports Minister Vijay Goel too ditched the organisers and the people after having promised to close the event ceremonially. Jual and Dharmendra did not feel comfortable that the event was being held in their own State because it is run by the BJD. Foreign dignitaries expressed surprise over such glaring bitterness between parties during national events. The next bidder Qatar had its dignitary taking over the folded event flag, all the time looking for national leaders to hand over. But not one big enough BJP soul had turned up.
On the closing evening, the crowd at the Kalinga Stadium sat on the edge of their seats as India kept winning one gold medal after the other the way a thriller movie climax unfolds. India fittingly wrapped up the championship by winning the ‘gold’ in the men's and women's 4x400m relay races to send the packed crowd celebrating in wild rapture.
No matter how bitterly the adversaries keep mum over the great achievement, the Naveen administration has proven beyond doubt that it can rise to any difficult occasion and take control in the shortest notice.
More than two millennia ago, Kalinga had attracted the barbaric, bloodthirsty empire-expander Ashok of Magadha to tame and turn him into a pious Buddhist monk-preacher.
Now, the Kalinga people have regained the ancient glory by making possible a most difficult job in a record time. Some foreign sports officials were heard saying before departure, “Odisha guys have posed a huge problem for us.
We are now under pressure to match their quality, or else face shame.” Odia hosts will hold the Hockey World Cup next year. The simple objective of the Naveen administration is to make Bhubaneswar a most sought-after city for hosting sports events in India.
For the first time in history yet again, Naveen Patnaik distributed reward cheques to all achievers irrespective of State or political region. Other Governments give only to achievers from own State. But Naveen made it clear that ‘India was host; so all Indian winners be treated alike. No parochialism.’ Gold winners got Rs 10 lakh, silver and bronze Rs 7.5 lakh and Rs 5 lakh, respectively, a gesture to inspire a sense of neutrality and equity.
Olympian and national record-holder in the 100m women's hurdles Anuradha Biswal, Asian Games silver medallist Pranati Mishra, Sushma Behera, former Indian women's football captain Shradhanjali Samantray were among those who ran the inaugural race on the newly-laid tracks, cheered on by the CM who cut a ribbon to declare the event open.
India not only topped the medal table but registered the highest haul of gold medals in the 44-year history of the athletics event. History was made on four critical fronts:
• making Kalinga Stadium ready in three months against all odds of manpower and inclement weather conditions, extreme heat, humidity and then rains,
• for the first time, India grabbing the top position with highest ever medal tally including the biggest ever number of gold medals,
• CM Naveen Patnaik giving away cash rewards to all winners irrespective of Statehood.
• Union Ministers and bosses of the ruling BJP including those from Odisha not appearing at a most prestigious national event lest Naveen administration should get proven to be efficient.
The BJP was making some inroads into Odisha; but by remaining meanly absent at a national event, they committed a suicidal mistake. The BJP victory prospects in Odisha have badly diminished as of now. Amit Shah has to take several extra miles to have the national as well as local leaders reformed and educated sensitively to seal the holes his foolish team has punched.