Belonging to the land of Himalayas, snow-capped mountains and pine forests are no wonders to them, but a pristine beach with golden sand certainly is.
This was what summed up the experiences of the 18-member football team from Jammu and Kashmir when they set their feet on the Ramakrishna beach here on Wednesday, only to get floored .
Bharat Darshan
“What we can say. The view is just spectacular. This is our first visit to the Coromandel Coast. Kashmir is known for its beauty, but this city and the beach are beautiful. More amazing is its cleanliness and friendly people. The day we spent here on the golden beach abutting the blue water is something we will cherish for ever,” said the young footballers.
The boys from the Under 14 and Under 19 State team were here as part of their five-day ‘Bharat Darshan’ tour that is being coordinated and hosted by the 198 Battalion of the CRPF.
Having watched just concluded the FIFA World Cup, the soccer buffs appeared vibrant, cherishing big dreams.
A few said they were keen on sticking to professional soccer, listing out their idols Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Mbappe. Some others described football as their passion, but appeared to have chalked out their academic pursuits. While a few wanted to be engineers, two of them set their goals to be space physicists. Another footballer, who is pursuing BBA, said that he would like take up Kashmiri carpet business after his studies.
Wary of the circumstances back home, they requested not to be quoted or photographed. After an assurance, they said, “We do not quite relate to the word ‘Azaadi’. India is our country and we want a normal life like any other youth in this country does. We just want our State government to function as it’s supposed to be,” they said.
Hunger game
Talking about Kashmiri cuisines, a footballer quipped, “Call it food or sport, we have big appetite for everything. All of us play cricket. It’s the most widely played game in our State after all.” Battalion Commandant K.S. Deswal said the boys also visited the aircraft and submarine museums.
