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50 years ago, October in Delhi was mellow and mild. It heralded the coming of winter and for sports lovers in Delhi, the start of a football and hockey carnival. The DCM football tournament invariably started in October and took a month to complete. From 1968 onwards the DCM tournament organizers started inviting foreign club teams annually and gave the football fans of the Capital and exposure to international football.
After India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s death in May 1964, a group of hockey enthusiasts initiated a move to organize a top-class domestic hockey tournament in the capital in which the best teams from India would participate. It was named the Nehru hockey tournament and the first edition was held in December 1964 in which 24 teams participated. Northern Railway, with four Olympians in their team emerged victorious beating South Eastern Railway 2-0 in the final.
In future years, this tournament was held in November. The inauguration coincided with Nehru’s birthday namely 14 November. So Delhi’s sports fans were entertained by enthralling and skilful hockey matches in November at the centrally located Shivaji stadium. The best Indian players displayed their skills on the grass turf and later the artificial surface of the Shivaji stadium in this iconic tournament.
Fans witnessed the blistering penalty corner hits of Prithipal Singh, Surjit Singh, Devinder Singh and Mukhbain Singh, the speed and thrust of Harbinder and Balbir Singh and later Dhanraj Pillay the stickwork and guile of outside right Joginder Singh and inside forwards V.J. Peter, Ashok Kumar and Inam-ur-Rehman (who scored two brilliant goals in the 1971 final for Indian Airlines against Great Britain XI), the grace and accurate passing of centre-half Ajitpal Singh (who was discovered in this tournament playing for Combined Universities in the mid sixties), the craft of the brilliant left wingers Zafar Iqbal, Harcharan Singh, Chand Singh and Shiv Dutt.
For decades, the cream of Indian hockey talent was either discovered in the junior Nehru tournaments or was on display in the senior tournament. It has truly become an iconic event in the sports calendar of the capital
In December and January, India’s oldest and the third oldest in the world, the Durand football tournament was held at the Delhi Gate stadium, now known as the Dr. Ambedkar stadium. The Durand tournament used to invariably be Indian football’s grand finale and would mark the end of a memorable sports season in Delhi.
This sporting scenario became a fixed pattern in the last four decades of the 20th century. Matches were held in the afternoon, spectators basked in the mild sun, munching peanuts and cheering their heroes. During the later stages of these tournaments, capacity crowds would witness enthralling encounters.
This sports festival got jolted in 1997. The DCM football tournament was not held after that as the company got trifurcated and the new generation of owners was keener on sponsoring tennis and golf. By the 21st century, the Durand tournament was also on the decline, with the focus on the five-month long I-League and the Indian Super League (ISL).
In 2014, the country’s oldest football tournament was shifted to Goa and in 2015 it was not held. So now the Nehru hockey tournament is the only survivor. Creditably the Nehru Society has expanded its activities and now conducts six tournaments in a calendar year.
The Jawaharlal Nehru hockey tournament society (JNHTS) in the 1960s and 70s was run by visionaries like the late Shiv Kumar Verma, KG Kakkar and Major General Virender Singh. To provide an impetus to Indian hockey they started the U-17 year’s Junior Nehru hockey tournament for the champion school teams of each state.
This was held just before the Senior Nehru hockey tournament started and the final would invariably be held on 14 November. Ex-Olympian Dilip Tirkey, now a member of Parliament and Vice-President of the JNHTS was discovered in this tournament.
To identify and nurture talented hockey players at a young age, the Nehru Society started the sub-junior (U-15 years) tournament from 1983 onwards. In 1994, the Nehru girls (U-17) hockey tournament was also started and in 1993 the Nehru Champions Colleges tournament kicked-off. To further promote the game, the Nehru-Dhyan Chand Cup for Delhi schools (Boys u-15 years) is also held. So hockey competitions at different age group levels are held for nearly three months.
The intentions of the Nehru Hockey tournament society are noble but for how long will they last. Expenses are mounting and sponsors are not forthcoming. The dynamic secretary-general of the JNHTS, Kukoo Walia has by his personal efforts roped in a few sponsors like Steelbird International, Kanwarji Construction and Alfa hockey sticks to sustain the tournament. The public sector undertakings like Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) etc are also not coming forward to save this iconic tournament.
As Kukoo Walia has admitted, it is becoming difficult to sustain this tournament. The New Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) charges JNHTS Rs. 5,000 per day, plus other expenses. The cost of hiring the stadium, for the 52nd Senior Nehru hockey tournament, held from 14—25 November 2015 was Rs. 3.5 lakhs. Umpires are paid Rs. 600 per day. Then there are board and lodging charges for the participating teams. Prize money has declined but still Rs. 3 lakhs is distributed amongst the winners (Rs 2 lakhs) and runners-up (Rs. 1 lakh).
Private sector sponsors in India are attracted by short-term, high-visibility sporting events like the IPL copy-cat leagues. There has been a shift in the sporting culture of metropolitan Indian youth of the mall-going middle and upper middle-class. They want to identify with professionally run sports leagues, which have an international flavor and offer instant entertainment. Hence, sponsorship money is only going to such leagues. So the JNHTS, which was the first domestic tournament to offer prize money way back in 1987, is now struggling for funds.
Kukoo Walia a former international hockey umpire and a distinguished player admits that sustaining the six annual tournaments by the JNHTS is an uphill task. He was groomed by the late Shiv Kumar Verma and due to his hockey background, knows the intricacies of running a domestic tournament. But Walia is also getting on in age and needs to groom his second in command Rohit Chauhan to succeed him when required.
In years to come, if the Nehru hockey tournament ceases to function due to financial constraints, a page of history will have turned forever. Hopefully, Walia’s reign will not end like that of the last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah Zaffar, the end of an era.
It is learnt that the Union Sports Ministry is considering an annual grant of Rs. 25 lakhs to sustain iconic tournaments like the Nehru hockey tournament, the Durand Cup and Beighton Cup in Kolkata. This will be a welcome move as it will enable the JNHTS to maintain its series of six popular annual tournaments, which have been a launching pad for many hockey players.
It will also preserve a hockey tournament which is an integral part of Delhi’s social and sporting ethos.
