Chhattisgarh Athlete’s Decade-Long Wait for Jobs Even After Winning Gold Medal in Nationals
Tanishka Dubey | January 13, 2025
Raipur, Chhattisgarh
In a small one-room house in Raipur’s Pandri area, Vishvanath Pathak,28, carefully guards his gold medal from the 49th National Softball Championship before heading out for his daily work as a collection agent.
The medal earned representing Chhattisgarh in 2018 is sitting alongside his application for a government job under the sports quota, which is still awaiting a response.
“Every morning, I check my phone hoping for news about the sports quota list,” said Pathak, who earns Rs 12,000 monthly at Jana Small Finance Bank.
Another morning, another practice session before heading off to other odd jobs Source:Tanishka Dubey
The story of Pathak reflects the plight of hundreds of athletes in Chhattisgarh who are still waiting for jobs promised under the state’s Utkrisht Khiladi Yojana (Excellence in Sports Scheme). The program was designed to provide government jobs to medal-winning sportspersons in national games across departments including police, revenue, and sports.
The state government has not released a Utkrisht Khiladi Yojana players list since 2013.
The scheme came into existence after a local media report in 2004 covered Rustam Sarang, an 18-year-old state champion weightlifter who couldn’t afford basic needs despite winning medals for Chhattisgarh. When the story reached the Chief Minister’s office, Sarang received a government job.
He continued training and went on to represent India at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, placing seventh in the 62 kg category. “If the government had showed support, Chhattisgarh would have had more talent than Haryana,” said Sarang.
In Gariyabandh and Kondagaon districts, official state data shows 60-70 new hires in the revenue department in 2024 and none through the sports quota. Sekhar Gosawmi, who won gold in softball like Pathak, applied in 2013.
“I am waiting but don’t have hopes,” said Gosawmi, who now working as a sports teacher at a private school.
A national-level athlete practicing on Raipur’s court at 5 AM Source:Tanishka Dubey
The state government celebrates the Bastar Olympics, a multi-sport event in the Naxal-affected region drawing thousands of tribal youth in traditional games like billet, cockfight, and gilli-danda. Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised it as “a platform for youth for honing talent, building new Bharat.”
But ground reality tells a different story. “People from the state’s academy have shifted to Haryana because they don’t see any scope here, both in terms of sports facilities and job opportunities,” said Pathak.
“Athletes need financial security, and other states offer better employment prospects along with sports development”
The impact reaches beyond local talent. Renuka Yadav, who made history as Chhattisgarh’s first female hockey player in the 2016 Rio Olympics, struggled for three years after representing India. With no support from the state government, she finally secured a position with Central Railways in Mumbai
“When younger players watch us struggling like this, why would they choose sports? Even after I played in the Olympics,” said Yadav. Since 2016, the state’s representation in national and international competitions has declined sharply.
For these athletes, the pain runs deeper than financial struggles. Last August, on National Sports Day, players in Chhattisgarh marked it as a “black day” protesting outside government offices.
Their complaint files have since moved from the sports ministry to the Chief Minister’s house to an IPS officer’s desk, and still somewhere in the middle but promises remain unfulfilled.
The dreams of medal winners now gather dust in government offices, while their talents fade away in private jobs. Their sporting achievements, once a source of state pride, now stand as silent witnesses to broken promises.
A government job through sports quota For these athletes, meant more than employment. It was a chance to continue playing while serving the state. “With a government job, I could have trained for the Indian team. Instead, I’m collecting payments,” said Pathak.
The athletes continue with their lives, trapped between unfulfilled government promises and the daily struggle for survival, hoping for a change in policy that might finally recognize their achievements.
Mails and calls to the youth and welfare department of state government did not elicit a response.