Poor Udalguri village boy selected for 6 year football coaching in Germany

From Our Correspondent

MANGALDAI, July 8: ‘Poverty can never be a barrier for talent’ reiterating it once again a nine year old village boy Chandan Boro of village Harisinga along the Indo-Bhutan border in Udalguri district despite his relentless struggle with poverty has ready to undergo six years long residential  football coaching in Germany –a dream country for every footballer. He is the only boy to be selected from Assam for coaching in Bittburg, Germany.

Chandan Boro-the village boy of class IV standard born in the family of a very poor family of daily wage earner Nripen Boro and his wife Bi Boro- a helper in a small road side tea stall of Harisinga till date has never got the opportunity to visit Mangaldai, not to speak of the state capital city of  Guwahati, nor he even thought of it. His elder brother Manoj Boro of Class VII was compelled to say bye to his academic life due to poverty and already left for Silchar in search of job as a daily wage earner. Chandan is living with his parents in a single room house of a very dilapidated condition that too constructed on the Railway land near Harisinga Railway station facing the uncertainty of any eviction drive.

 A student of North Harisinga LP School, last year Chandan Boro being highly interested in Football like his class mates put his step in the Rabi Kachari Memorial Mini Modern Stadium to join the free coaching conducted by Harisinga Football Coaching Center under coach Samual Basumatary and continued his practice with the ball and acquired the skill and tactics of controlling the ball at the very tender age. And perhaps on that day the Lady Luck started smiling on this poor talent in Football. Football Coach Samual Basumatary as per message from the Sports & Youth Welfare Department of Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) took Chandan Boro along with five other budding talents from Harisinga to SAG SAI complex at Kokrajhar on June 16 last to appear in a selection camp. In the selection camp Chandan Boro was successful in proving football skills before the officials concerned and got selection among more than 120 young footballers gathered from the four BTAD districts.

The selection camp was organized by the Tata Trust, Mumbai under the Football Development Program in partnership with U Sports Mumbai and Germany under U Dream Football  for selection of budding football talents under 15. It aims to identify the football talents at an early stage and to impart them the training at intertiol level with academic as well as infrastructure support to mould and shape them as professiol footballer. Besides it, equal emphasis is also given on CBSE education to pursue higher education in German University. The organizers will offer scholarship to cover all the expenditure for training, lodging and education.  The Center for Microfince and Livelihood (CML) an associate of Tata Trust on July 7 vide a letter to the father of Chandan Boro has confirmed his selection to Germany.

The rare achievement of little village boy Chandan Boro has created a feeling of encouragement and inspiration to all the football lovers particularly the younger ones. Every one in Harisinga have been praying before the Almighty so that after completion of  his coaching in Germany, Chandan Boro would be able to take Indian Football in the intertiol level. At the same time it is the need of the hour that the BTC administration or the state government should come forward for allotment of a plot of land along with a dwelling house fopr the poor parents of Chandan Boro. Talking to The Sentinel, Udalguri Deputy Commissioner Sadha Hojai has assured to offer all possible help and cooperation in this regard. Significantly President of harisinga Primary Committee of All Bodo Students Union Nijwmsa Boro who iis also taking part in the coaching, has expressed his willingness to dote a suitable plot of land to the family of Chandan Boro.