Indian athletes join hands in fight against coronavirus pandemic

Many well-known Indian sports personalities have come together to help the needy.

The whole world at the moment is suffering from the coronavirus pandemic which has not only halted many sporting events but the general day-to-day activities as well. Much like the rest of the world, India too is under severe problems due to the outbreak, with many daily wage workers suffering from hunger and joblessness due to the lockdown.

In this time of crisis, several pertinent sports personalities of our country, regardless of the field they pertain to, have come across, and joined hands in unity to help their nation. From donating money to the cause of helping feed the poor and vulnerable, the sports fraternity has shown immense empathy and togetherness.

Point-in-focus are Lovlina Borgohain, Dattu Baban Bhokanal and members of the Hockey fraternity who are doing their bit in helping the less fortunate during coronavirus pandemic.

Lovlina Borgohain, the welterweight boxer who had managed to qualify for the Tokyo Games in 2020, is doing her bit in her hometown of Golaghat, Assam. She has been steadfast in providing essentials to the vulnerable families with the help of her father, Tilken Borgohain, and has helped over 200 families in the Barpathar area so far.

She has called for others to help the needy and has been taking the help of social media in doing so as well. She said while speaking to the Indian Express, “I was raised here (Golaghat) and there are many who are facing difficulties, some of them are not getting food. I felt we should aid them,”

“I’m telling everyone on social media to join the cause. There are many people who are willing to help but are unable to do the same. I’ve been posting videos on Facebook and Instagram,” added the 22-year-old. 

Next up is Dattu Baban Bhokanal, the rower who is the Asian Games gold medal winner. He was seen helping with the sanitisation process using a fertiliser sprayer meant for agricultural use back in his village Talegaon Ruhi.

The 29-year-old has garnered the support of his family, carrying out sanitation drives twice a week. He spoke to PTI and expressed that, “Me, my family and some friends decided to sanitise the village, which has a population of about 12,000. Sanitisation of any area is important to keep the virus at bay. For example, when a person visits a doctor's clinic, he might touch the pole or the walls inside that clinic. Therefore, we thought sanitisation of the clinic was essential along with several other places.”

He further added by saying that, “We sanitised the places people frequent like the government clinic, veterinary clinic, gram panchayat office, its gates.”

Former Hockey player, Gagan Ajith Singh, now employed in Punjab Police has been seen delivering food parcels. Rajpal Singh, his former captain in the Men’s Hockey team is also a part of the police force and is helping with maintaining order in the area.

“Many hockey players approached me and said that they want to contribute in providing food to the underprivileged. We have identified 30 families that will contribute funds to feed the needy.” Rajpal Singh told the Hindustan Times. 

Keeping with the tune, the Chandigarh Golf Club, which has produced stars like Jeev Milkha Singh is also providing meals for the needy wherein 600 meals are prepared everyday and distributed in the local area.