Twenty children from Pakistan’s Hindu Bhil refugee community, now living in Jodhpur, have been selected to compete in a national level sports and karate competition to be held in Madhya Pradesh’s Ujjain next week.
The event, 5th National Federation Cup, will be held at Nanakheda Stadium, Ujjain, from October 4–6. The competition, organised by Youth Games Development Federation India (YGDFI) and recognised by the Ministry of MSME and the Fit India Movement, will see the refugee children competing in the Karate category against peers from across India.
All 20 participants – 10 boys and 10 girls all between 8 and 16 years of age, are students at Agni Samaj Martial Arts Training Centre, a free initiative that has been training nearly 70 children from underprivileged and refugee backgrounds for more than a year.
This is not their first tryst with national-level sports.
Earlier this year, children from the same centre stunned audiences at two separate competitions held in Jaipur, bagging multiple gold and silver medals each time. Their achievements even drew personal recognition from local MLA Devendra Joshi, who met and congratulated the students in Jodhpur.
The centre was founded by Sanjeev Newar, an IIT-IIM alumnus and data scientist, with the vision of instilling confidence and martial spirit in children who have grown up with little access to structured sports or self-defence training. Daily sessions are led by Bharat Pannu, a 4th Dan Black Belt and former armyman.
“These children once lived in fear, even unable to dream freely in their land of birth. In Bharat, they now stand tall, competing nationally and proving that courage, discipline, and Dharma can transform their future,” said Newar.
The Sewa Nyaya Utthan Foundation, a Delhi-based social organisation, has stepped in to fully sponsor the team’s travel, accommodation, and participation costs, ensuring that financial barriers do not stand in the way of their aspirations.
See news report of the selection in Jodhpur media published on 30 September:
