He loves roller-skating but for tracks all he had was the by-lanes of his locality in Vasundhara in Ghaziabad.
Then one day, 11-year-old Shikhar Yadav wrote to M.S. Gill, the Union Minister of Youth Affair and Sports.
His letter read, “Sir, I am telling you that these authorities
and the private builders are very bad people in the sense that they are only trying to gather money like the bees gathers the honey (sic.).”
His aim was simply to draw the ministry’s attention to the lack of provision of a stadium or a sports academy in his colony.
But the ministry not only replied to the Class VI student of Air Force School in Ghaziabad, it also suggested a policy change to the Union Minister for Urban Development.
Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Dr M.S. Gill wrote to Union Minister for Urban Development S. Jaipal Reddy to make a clear policy direction for all urbanisation in the country.
The minister’s letter, referring to the child’s request, pointed to the greed of builders who give no space in their colonies for playgrounds.
“I suggest that all urban residential construction be directed to ensure that a minimum percentage of area is reserved for playgrounds,” Gill’s letter stated.
“I practiced on the roads and by-lanes of my locality. Children like me have no sports facilities here,” Yadav told HT.
He said he would continue to pursue the matter, if nothing is achieved on the ground level.
“I will keep writing on this.”