Something rotten at the NSU

The National Sports University (NSU) had a rather curious beginning, in which I was indirectly involved.

- YAMBEM LABA

The year was 2014. Narendra Modi had just been sworn in as Prime Minister of India, the BJP had yet to establish a foothold in Manipur, and several ambitious party hopefuls were making a beeline to 7 Race Course Road to seek an audience with the “Big Man.” Around that time, a group of BJP leaders came to meet me at my house. The delegation was led by N. Rattan, popularly known as Kapu, a young leader who had earlier, in 2012, challenged future Chief Minister N. Biren Singh in the Heingang Assembly constituency.

He called me Oja (teacher) and said, “Please bring your enchanted typewriter.” So, I lugged out my old Olympia, which I had brought from New York in 1991 and on which I had thumped out thousands of words for The Statesman and other publications. We then headed to the Manipur University campus, where there stood a Meitei Yumjao—a traditional Manipuri-style house—and sat on its porch.

That was when Kapu requested, “Oja, please draft a letter for us to be addressed to the Prime Minister.”

Then I began thumping on the typewriter as one request after another was added. Finally, Kapu said, “Oja, please include a request to the Hon'ble Prime Minister for a Sports University.” I quipped, “Where in the world is there such a concept as a Sports University?” He replied that there was one in China.

The rationale behind the idea was that Manipur is a sports powerhouse. From Dingko Singh, who won a gold medal in boxing at the 1998 Asian Games, the first time and after 25 years, to the magnificent Mary Kom, to former India football captain Rennedy Singh, to multiple world champion Mirabai Chanu - the list of Manipuri sports heroes is almost endless. So where better to locate a sports university?