Former state-level Punjab hockey player lifts sacks to make a living, gets Rs 1.25 per sack

(Video credit: Paramjeet Kumar) pic.twitter.com/b9puKUXP2z

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Kumar, who was part of Sports Authority of India, PEPSU and Punjab teams and won medals in four junior hockey nationals and was also named in the Indian junior hockey team in 2007, gets Rs 1.25 per sack and he loads and unloads around 450 sacks per day to earn a living.

“Roz da ehi routine hai, borian lana te utarna te ek bori de 1.25 rupaye milde han (It’s my daily routine to load and unload sacks from trucks and I get Rs 1.25 for each sack). Where I work, not many know about hockey, but when they get to know, they always pat me on the back and that’s the only reward I have got from hockey. When I return home, I see my five-year-old son Vikrant and I make him play with a plastic hockey and ball. Whatever happened to me, I want him to change that,” said Kumar while speaking to The Indian Express from Faridkot.

Kumar grew up in Faridkot and was initiated into hockey by coach Baltej Indepal Singh Babbu at the Government Bijendra College and later took coaching from Baljinder Singh. In 2004, Kumar was selected for the Sports Authority of India (SAI) training centre at NIS, Patiala, and was then selected for the Centre of Excellence for Hockey at NIS, Patiala, in 2007. Kumar remained with the centre till 2009 before he played hockey on contract for Punjab Police and Punjab State Electricity Board for three years. During his time at Patiala, Kumar was part of the SAI Combined team in U-16 and U-18 Hockey Nationals where the team bagged silver medal in U-16 nationals at Guntur, Andhra Pradesh. He also played for PEPSU team and Punjab team in two nationals returning with medals and was also part of the Indian junior team named for Junior Asia Cup which was to be held in Bangladesh in 2007. The tournament was cancelled due to administrative reasons. Kumar played in the Nehru International Tournament with the Indian junior team in Delhi.

“When I was selected for the SAI centre at Patiala, I could not even think of affording a hockey kit. But staying in the hostel always made me dream to play for India one day. I played for SAI combined teams in the junior nationals. When I was chosen for the Junior Asia Cup, I got the blazer and I could not sleep the whole night. But two days later, the tournament got cancelled. Tokyo Olympics bronze medal winning Indian captain Manpreet Singh and other players like Rupinder Pal Singh, Lalit Upadhayay and Kothajeet Singh were my team-mates in the SAI teams and they would always praise and encourage me,” reminisces Kumar.

In 2012 Kumar suffered an injury to his left hand and was away from the game for more than a year. He made a return after his injury and played at the state-level and local-level. In 2015 he took his time off from the game and started working as a ‘palledar’. He currently stays in a rented accommodation of her sister along with his wife and son and is hopeful of getting a job when he meets Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on February 1 in Chandigarh.

“After the injury, it has been a struggle to make a comeback. I had to work as a ‘palledar’ at the mandi to make ends meet. I hope to return as a player soon or get a job as a coach. If I could do that, I can be a good example for my son and maybe he can play for India one day which I could not,” says Kumar.