KARACHI: In times when the national game has reached a new low, the Karachi Development Authority (KDA) has entered its name in the annals of the game by forming the first ever women’s hockey team in Sindh under Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

It is pertinent to mention that KDA had revived its men’s hockey team after a long layoff last year.

The 18 girls, including three from interior Sindh, who were selected by a panel of former Olympians and KHA officials after open trials besides the woman coach, were presented appointment letters by the provincial minister for women’s development Syeda Shehla Raza in a ceremony on Wednesday.

‘A beginning has been made and it will go a long way in reviving the sporting teams and the playgrounds,’ the DG KDA Samiuddin Siddiqui said at a press conference in Civic Centre office.

Initially, the players will be offered a monthly salary of Rs15,000 for one year while the coach, who is a former national player, gets Rs25,000 per month. Special incentives will be given if the team wins any event or a player gets selection in the national team, he added.

Amidst applause the KDA chief announced that the KDA women’s hockey team will visit Malaysia to play a series of matches in the near future. Sponsorship for the proposed trip has been arranged, he informed.

He lauded the KHA President Dr Syed Junaid Ali Shah, former Olympians Hanif Khan, Samiullah and Waseem Feroz for the role they played to revive the game and stadia in the city from scratch.

Sami Siddiqui congratulated the selected girls and advised the left out ones not to lose heart as formation of another women’s hockey team in the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB) is in pipeline.

The KHA President, who is honorary adviser sports KDA, said as per original master plan of the city prepared during the era of former KDA chief Z. A. Nizami, 46 playgrounds will soon get their original status after getting a nod from the Sindh Chief Minister.

He asked the women’s players to make ‘Vision Pakistan’ as their vision and always aim high to represent the country.

He went on to say that dirty politics has destroyed the game in the last couple of years in the country in general and the city in particular.

Minister Shehla Raza said under her new role in the cabinet it’s her duty to safeguard women’s rights, health and training etc and closely monitor the activities.

Answering a question the minister clarified that she had gone to attend a rival faction function in place of Local Bodies Minister Saeed Ghani.

She paid tributes to Dr Mohammad Ali Shah and hoped Junaid will carry forward his father’s mission.

Meanwhile, Shehla has been elected chairperson of the KHA women’s wing the other day. Asma Shah and Naheed Fatima were elected as patrons.

Liza Mehdi and Benish Mohammad Ali were elected president and secretary respectively.

Other office bearers include Nasira Ilyas (senior vice-president), Nusrat Fatima (joint secretary), Farah Awan Chattari and Dr Saulat Zareen (members of the executive board).

They will hold the office for four years 2018-2022.

Team:

Shazma Naseem, Mahnoor Khan, Kanwal Ejaz, Ayesha Mahmood, Batool Kazim, Mehak Yaseen, Fatima Zehra, Mehwish Naz, Rubab Fatima, Momal Suqaina, Mishal Baloch (Benazirabad), Dur-e-Najaf, Ghazala Choudary, Inshara Khan, Maheen Ali, Nimra Javeed (Hyderabad), Mahnoor Jamshed, Ayesha Zafar (Benazirabad).

Coach: Beenish Mohammad Ali.

Published in Dawn, November 1st, 2018