Tapping unbounded potential

Karnataka's latest initiative to groom Siddi tribe's children into athletes has yielded encouraging results

Siddi community children training at the Vidyanagar Sports Hostel under coach Dhanasanjay (not in picture). DH Photo/ B H Shivakumar

Less than four months ago, Joseph Bastvion Siddi’s understanding of a ring was limited to WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) he had watched on television with his friends from the African-origin tribe.

The 17-year-old from the village of Ugginkeri in Mundgod taluk of Uttara Kannada district since then has created quite a flutter with his jabs, hooks and uppercuts inside the boxing ring.

Within four weeks of training, a group of eight Siddi boxers won seven medals at the 3rd Jayn boxing festival held in Puducherry recently.

Joseph, with his dominant show, was the pick of the lot. The first PUC student not only blew away the field to win the gold in the elite 71-75 kgs category but was adjudged the best boxer of the tournament.

Others to put up notable performances were Sviwan Sanjay Salagatta (youth 54-57 kgs), who clinched gold; Darshan Mahabhaleswara Siddi (youth 67-71 kgs) and Dinesh Shankar Siddi (youth 48-50 kgs), a silver each; Nikhil Mariyan Siddi (youth 50-52 kgs), Kiran Sanjay Salagatta (junior 50-52 kgs) and Hajarat Ali (junior 40-42 kgs) who finished third to take bronze medals.

They are among 52 youngsters selected during a scouting programme launched in September 2021 by the Karnataka State Government along with the Department of Youth Empowerment and Sports and the Centre for Sports Science to unearth Siddis with athletic abilities. The project includes providing education, nutritious food, training, equipment and tournament exposure with all the expenses being funded by the State government.

Nearly 500 children belonging to the tribal community - who live in the fringes of the Western Ghats forests - took part in the trials held at Yellapura, Haliyal, Mundgod and Dandeli. The final candidates were then brought to Jayaprakash Narayan National Youth Training Centre near Chikkajala in Bengaluru and further divided into wrestling, boxing and athletics after multiple tests by CSS experts.

“Everything is new to me. I had friends from only my community back home. Here everything is different. But my parents (daily wage workers) are happy I won,” said the teen from a tribe that traces its roots to Bantu people from East Africa, believed to be brought to India around the 7th century by the Arab traders and later by the Portuguese in the 16-17th century.

“It was an invitational tournament that had 161 boxers from Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Puducherry participating. We wanted to introduce the Siddi boys to the competition atmosphere,” explained Dhanasanjay, the coach appointed by DYES to train 14 Siddi youths (nine boys, five girls) in boxing at the Vidyanagar Sports Hostel facility.

"Everybody at the tournament was shocked and surprised at the raw strength of these athletes, and by their fearless attitude. These are early stages but I’m hopeful that with the right training, nutrition and support we can keep growing to greater heights,” said the coach who was Karnataka’s last boxing national gold medallist when he won in the 54 kgs bantamweight category in 1985.

Though superior physical attributes and endurance, thanks to their genetics, of the tribal community of close to 20,000 people in Karnataka have often caught the attention of the authorities, there have been only half-hearted efforts to tap into their huge potential.

The first of such efforts was made way back in 1987 by the Sports Authority of India under the guidance of Margaret Alva - the then Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports - when they began the ‘Special Area Games Scheme’.

Though the scheme had many from the community enrolling, it was abruptly discontinued after six years. Several attempts to revive the scheme in the 2000s too remained futile.

But now, with the State department’s latest initiative taking off on the right note, it has rekindled hope of the younger generation of Siddis to escape from the odds faced by their predecessors.

On the outlook, grooming people who are natural athletes seems a simple task. But given the tribes' poverty, the racial discrimination and isolation they have faced in the sub-continent and their unchanged socio-economic status even after living in this part of the world for centuries make the assimilation process of Siddis a difficult proposition.

Also complicating the issues are parents' unwillingness to send children away from home and youngsters' struggle to adjust to big town/city set-up from the close-knit community. The lack of vision by the authorities to address these concerns and channalise the communities’ potential towards sports have also resulted in the government's plans hitting a roadblock.

Sport with its multi-dimensional benefits has the power to make a positive social impact on the lives of this tribe, provided the scheme is a long-term investment by the government, feels Indira Ramarao, professor of sociology at the University of Mysore.

“It will give them exposure to the competitive world which otherwise these people - who are mostly forest dwellers in secluded regions of the State - are deprived of.

“The authorities, however, need to understand that success in sport does not purely depend on physicality. A holistic approach in their overall development as individuals is essential to make this a great opportunity for both the kids as well as the authorities to improve the tribes' quality of life,” she said.

Talking about the instant result, KC Narayana Gowda, Minister of State for Youth Empowerment and Sport, said: “This is just the beginning of bigger achievements to come and I’m confident that they will bring more laurels to Karnataka by winning at the national and international stage in the future."

Whether it is to create future champions or change lives through sport, the primary challenge for the State government and DYES is to ensure the sustainability of the initiative.

After all, sport is often used as a tool to bridge social barriers. It dons the role of a savior by providing educational and employment opportunities, especially for those lacking them. A weapon to fight poverty and adversity, gain visibility and respect.

All of which the next gen of Siddi's require in order to break out from the shackles of isolation and social neglect.

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