How a modest water sports club in Delhi is giving wings to dreams of many youngsters

Now a sepoy at the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), Kumar credits his selection wholly to his love for canoeing.

For Kumar, like many others who come to the club, the sports club is not just an outlet for recreation but also a route to get the coveted government job, particularly in the defence forces, and a way out of their middle-class life.

Said Manjeet Shekhawat, the head coach at the club, “Our aim is to not only train students in different water sports but to also enable them to get government jobs through the sports quota.”

Perhaps, his students securing defence jobs is a way for Shekhawat to realise his own dreams. Shekhawat earlier wanted to get into the Border Security Force (BSF) but couldn’t due to the rigid height requirements of the paramilitary force. Since then, he has been training children and athletes at the Soniya Vihar club, which was established six years ago.

Kumar is grateful that for a nominal fee of Rs 500 a month, a whole new world opened up before him. From training to train tickets for university and national tournaments, all was taken care of by the sports club.

“I think that’s why not many parents hesitate to send their children here,” said Kumar whose father works as a security guard while his mother is a housewife. The oldest sibling of his three younger sisters, Kumar said that his greatest priority was to get a stable job and support his family, adding that canoeing came as an unexpected route to land one.

Not just jobs, the sport is also helping students secure scholarships to support their education.

One example of this is Vishal, 20, who has been kayaking for four years now. Having won at least 18 medals at the national level and several others at the university level, Vishal, who goes by only one name, has secured a scholarship at Chandigarh University. Like his coach, he too wants to get into the BSF.

However, despite his wards winning around 400 medals across different championships, Shekhawat rues the fact that his club has not received any aid from any government yet.

“Equipment for water sports is expensive,” said Shekhawat. “One boat costs around Rs 15 to 16 lakh, then the paddles cost around Rs 55,000 to 60,000,” he added. Besides, the paddles have to be tailor-made according to a player’s height and weight. This adds to the cost and prevents sharing of equipment between players, he added.

With the Delhi Chief Minister mentioning his club in a post recently, after meeting a group of para-athletes who made a mark at a championship in Thailand, Shekhawat is hopeful that his club might get a boost.

A few weeks back, CM Arvind Kejriwal wrote on X: “Met all the para-athletes of India who won gold medals in the World Dragon water sports championship and live in Delhi. These players practice at Sonia Vihar Water Sports Club. I have given orders to the concerned minister that the government will provide all the facilities that these players need to prepare for the future…”

Shekhawat said the meeting with the CM has opened doors for the athletes and expressed hope that a grant would follow.