Magic Bus on a roll,hits top gear

Since its inception in Mumbai in 1999,Magic Bus has worked on what it calls the Sport for Development principle. Now,it has grown to such an extent that its “partners” page on its website names everyone from FIFA and the English Premier League to the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. Last July,the NGO stepped into Pune for the first time.

“During our sessions,apart from teaching them sports,we also have developmental messages that we look to reinforce in the kids,” Pune’s district programme manager,Haimanti Kumar,said. “Things such as cleanliness,or how you should be friends with everyone,irrespective of their caste. There is a didi who will check their nails,their hair,and set them principles such as punctuality,no littering and no fighting with the other kids.”

The didis ,or bhaiyyas as the case may be,are Community Sports Coaches (CSCs),who are drawn from within the communities to work as volunteers.

“The CSCs are in the 16-25 age group,and go through six days of training,and have to do a minimum of two hours every week. We look to have one CSC per 25 children,” says Kumar. “They are volunteers,and aren’t paid,but Magic Bus tries to help them with their livelihood in other ways. If anyone wants to go for a computer course,for example,we link them to institutes that will train them at a low cost.”

Since arriving in Pune,Magic Bus has quietly gone about establishing its presence. “Apart from the Swargate area,we also have communities in Yerawada,Pimpri-Chinchwad,Bhosari and Hadapsar,” says Kumar. “We have reached 4368 children so far. I was doing the report only today,so all the numbers are on my fingertips.”

Apart from community model programmes such as the one described above,Magic Bus also enters ‘institutional model’ partnerships with schools and orphanages. “In several PMC schools,for example,they have games classes,but no coaches or equipment,so the teacher just lets them free,” Kumar says.

“So we take permission from these schools,and our youth mentors go there,according to the school’s time-table,and conduct sports training for the kids. If you add the children from the institutional model,we have about 7,000 in all.”

How hard is it,initially,to step into a community and convince parents to send their children for these sessions?

“If you talk about their kids playing,the parents are very keen on it,as long as it doesn’t hamper their day-to-day activities,” Kumar said. “The bigger issue is that some of them are reluctant to send the girl children. About 48 per cent of our enrollment is girls,but when you go from the 7-11 age group to the 11-14 age group,you do see a drop-off. We are working on this,but it will take time.”

Most of the community projects are only in the teething phase. Magic Bus has been with the Prem Nagar community for only three months. When asked if there was any visible impact? Kumar added: “The biggest change so far is that the children are now regular for these sessions,and that they are enjoying the activities and the company of the other kids. Some of the CSCs tell us that earlier,the kids used to call them by name. Now,when they see them in uniform,it’s always didi or madam.”