New Delhi: After former hockey greats united to vent their anger at the functioning of the game's governing body in the country, it was a state unit of the IHF, the Bombay Hockey Association that lambasted it for pracitsing regionalism and poor administration.
However, the BHA's scathing attack was a forked one as it was also aimed at the Olympians themselves who did not seem to offer any solution for the growing administration glitches in the IHF, and also to provide advices to revive the game.
"There is total apathy of the administration staff within the framework of the IHF secretariat headed by Secretary General K Jothikumaran and this lacuna is reflected in most of the member states of the country," BHA secretary Kehar Singh said in a statement.
"The appointment of selectors is based on ad-hocism, regionalism and favouritism," he added.
Singh however, chose to side with IHF chief KPS Gill and said it is the selectors who are to be blamed for changes which have often been doubted.
Singh wasn't happy with the way the protest was carried out in the Capital by former Indian hockey greats. "Our association would emphatically rubbish hollow claims made by a small group of disgruntled Olympians, none of whom have been able to offer a single piece of advice for the revival of hockey in this country."
Hitting out at former players, Singh said, "Ex-Olympians and national players virtually have made little or no contribution to lift Indian hockey by assisting schoolchildren in learning the basics of the game."
Kehar Singh also blamed the poor infrastructure and a proper coaching system for the continuing debacle in a game that was dominated by India a few decades ago.
"We don't have a system in place for developing coaches in our country who have the knowledge of sports medicine, nutrition and sports physiology," he said.
"The number of astro turfs suitable for the revival of hockey is woefully inadequate. Our youngsters in schools and colleges cannot be exposed to uneven mud and grass surfaces with an expectation that they will successfully graduate to playing on faster and truer surfaces like astro turf," he said.
Singh was in no mood to mince words as he stressed for the game to be taken to the masses through television.
"The need of the hour is to recruit professional marketing personnel to understand the dynamics of TV marketing and implementing the financial mechanism for augmenting revenues to the development of the game."
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