From being one of the least played games in the 1970s to clinching gold for the country in the 12th South Asian Games, 2016, Kho-Kho has come a long way in Assam.
Despite being one of the most ancient games that originated from India, Kho-Kho, which is mostly played in the central and north India, did not find much following in Assam until now.
Today, however, there are district Kho-Kho associations in all the 21 sports districts that train cumulatively more than 2,500 players and organise regular matches. The state team is capable of representing Assam in national tournaments and has one player from Assam in each of the male and female Indian Kho Kho squads.
Pinku Deka, an apprentice from Sonapur-based Sports Authority of India earned accolades from the nation and internationally for his international debut match against England at New Delhi last year, while Supriya Gogoi, who hails from Upper Assam’s Dibrugarh helped India clinch gold in the South Asian Games, 2016.
The state team had clinched the 11th position in the sub-junior level of the National Games and first position in an inter-school tournament.
But, it was no easy task for the sport in Assam. Back in 1975, when the All Assam Kho-Kho Association (AAKA) was established, it was a group of the sport’s enthusiasts with no environment or players in the districts struggling to get slots in national tournaments.
“Most of the players were tea garden workers who came from Jharkhand and Bengal and had little knowledge of the game. Youths from Assam were not that interested. It went on like this till 2000 when the association was reformed and built with grit resoluteness to engage more youths and districts with the sport,” Rajiv Prakash Baruah, president of AAKA, who took over the helm of affairs in 2000, said.
“The national matches were mostly played by states like Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal, where the sport is very popular,” Baruah said.
The first break, however, came in 2007, when Assam hosted the National Games and being host state, got enlisted by default.
“Our players did not win the matches, but their grit and energy was open for all to see and the sport got a lot of attention since then,” Baruah said.
Formation of all the district associations was completed by 2008. The state team was coached by Arjuna Pantheon M Prakash in 2005 and 2007.
Currently, the state team has a NIS Coach training them along with kabaddi players as only one coach is allotted from the institute for both the sports.
Baruah, encouraging more players to enrol for the game said, “Football and cricket were the popular games back then and are still now. But more players should start playing this game as it needs no equipment or investment and provides fitness, stamina and agility like any other game. Moreover, since there is less competition, there are more opportunities in this sport than its counterparts.”
Besides Supriya Gogoi, whose feat in SAG landed her a job in one of the leading corporate houses of the northeast, a government grant of Rs 10 lakhs and an opportunity to pursue her studies, several players have received scholarships and state government jobs in various departments.