GOQii

Blog

  • HOME
  • HEALTHY LIVING
  • FITNESS
  • HEALTHY RECIPES
  • USER STORIES
  • KARMA
  • BUY GOQii

February 21, 2017 By Anusha Subramanian Leave a Comment

Sports for Social Inclusion

SPL-Slum children

“Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do”—– John Wooden

GOQii supports Social Premier League (SPL)

Sports they say is a great leveller. It can bring the privileged and the underprivileged on the same platform to compete with each other in true spirit. Sports can very well be used as a tool for social inclusion and to bring about a social change. Some anecdotal evidence suggests that when applied correctly, sport can create bridges where boundaries usually exist, giving participants a lesson in teamwork, empathy for their teammates and respect for their opponents. It helps develop a strong sense of morality; and the development of an appreciation of diversity.

Sport is clearly not just about competition and exercise, but also regulates behaviour and creates a feeling of belonging, which in turn leads to the strengthening of democracy.

Singing Footsteps Foundation (SFF), is one such organisation in Patna, Bihar that is trying to bring about a social change through sports. The organisation started by Toni Sharma, a professor at NIFT and currently pursuing PhD (ECONOMICS) at IIT aims at bringing about true equality in human lives as well as balance in the ecology, using sports as the driving force to bring together the youth and achieve the social balance.

toni sharma-SFF-SPLSharma is a strong proponent of an egalitarian society, a philanthropist and a social activist at heart. He also mentors startups and advises various incubation centres. His idea with SFF is to showcase and effectively address the most burning and plaguing issues of our society at a large scale, on a single platform.

He says, “Our vision is to bring about social change by harnessing the power of youth and sports. We are constantly focusing on social changes through innovative strategies. We believe in the intent backed by invention”.

So what does SFF do with sports? It has started a league cricket game called ‘Social Premier League’ (SPL), to bring together the virtues of sports to fight the inequities of the society.SPL is a cricket tournament involving the entire youth and corporate fraternity to effectively spread the message of social integration and awareness. It is an initiative that endeavours to bring together the youth from all backgrounds in a relaxed and natural environment that are ideal for harnessing the power of sports to engage communities and change lives. 

This year’s SPL that was held at the beginning of this month included Autorickshaw drivers, slum children and, girls and boys of premier colleges.

By way of the cricket tournament, SFF has been able to bring about a behavioural change among the auto drivers such as being more responsible on the road, minimising honking etc. “We have seen a tremendous change in the attitude of the auto drivers since they have been playing this tournament. They have developed empathy and we realised that we can create awareness about lots of issues along with them. If we enable them with the right tools they can help us in disseminating information and creating awareness,” says Sharma.

As participation in the league tournament, each of the auto drivers teams was also asked to pick a social cause that they would like to create awareness about. The two issues that the auto drivers were keen on creating awareness about was Cancer and Malnutrition. They carried messages on these issues in their auto.

SFF is now working towards a financial inclusion of these auto drivers by opening bank accounts for them and after this, they will conduct health check-ups for their children and family as a whole.

According to Sharma, “Sports is the most powerful and the only stimulus in the world that can help build a positive attitude, instil fearlessness and leads to significant overall development.”

“We believe that to make a significant contribution we need to employ the best of youth to uplift those at the lowest rung of the society. We believe in concentrating on the weakest. We believe in mutually beneficial relations that help us raise resources in a way that others can’t. And yes, we don’t settle for the second spot, in order to give the best to those who need our help the most,” Sharma concludes.

As a company, GOQii has been supporting several causes through its Karma Platform. As part of our ongoing efforts to do good karma in the society and get our players to do the same. Supporting SPL and SFF is one such initiative in this direction. GOQii believes that giving to others gives an inner happiness to one while also improving one’s own health.

 

Search

Recent Posts

  • Take The Best Route Forward! Lakshmi Ajitha Gets Healthier With GOQii
  • Sleep Series: The Relentless Rivalry of REM and NREM
  • Welcome the Summer With Sunscreen
  • Pranayama To Detoxify The Body, Mind And Vital Organs
  • Should You Eat Eggs During Summer?

Stay Updated

Archives

  • April 2021 (15)
  • March 2021 (27)
  • February 2021 (24)
  • January 2021 (26)
  • December 2020 (27)
  • November 2020 (25)
  • October 2020 (27)
  • September 2020 (26)
  • August 2020 (26)
  • July 2020 (26)
  • June 2020 (27)
  • May 2020 (25)
  • April 2020 (24)
  • March 2020 (24)
  • February 2020 (21)
  • January 2020 (17)
  • December 2019 (21)
  • November 2019 (24)
  • October 2019 (25)
  • September 2019 (23)
  • August 2019 (18)
  • July 2019 (23)
  • June 2019 (21)
  • May 2019 (24)
  • April 2019 (21)
  • March 2019 (22)
  • February 2019 (21)
  • January 2019 (25)
  • December 2018 (16)
  • November 2018 (11)
  • October 2018 (12)
  • September 2018 (13)
  • August 2018 (23)
  • July 2018 (17)
  • June 2018 (23)
  • May 2018 (17)
  • April 2018 (28)
  • March 2018 (19)
  • February 2018 (14)
  • January 2018 (22)
  • December 2017 (16)
  • November 2017 (28)
  • October 2017 (22)
  • September 2017 (23)
  • August 2017 (10)
  • July 2017 (12)
  • June 2017 (13)
  • May 2017 (14)
  • April 2017 (9)
  • March 2017 (7)
  • February 2017 (7)
  • January 2017 (12)
  • December 2016 (10)
  • November 2016 (8)
  • October 2016 (9)
  • September 2016 (8)
  • August 2016 (13)
  • July 2016 (11)
  • June 2016 (10)
  • May 2016 (13)
  • April 2016 (18)
  • March 2016 (19)
  • February 2016 (8)
  • January 2016 (8)
  • December 2015 (6)
  • November 2015 (10)
  • October 2015 (8)
  • September 2015 (10)
  • August 2015 (14)
  • July 2015 (12)
  • June 2015 (15)
  • May 2015 (9)
  • April 2015 (13)
  • March 2015 (10)
  • February 2015 (6)
  • January 2015 (13)
  • December 2014 (14)
  • November 2014 (12)
  • October 2014 (6)
  • September 2014 (16)
  • August 2014 (14)
  • July 2014 (9)
  • June 2014 (3)
  • May 2014 (8)
  • April 2014 (5)
Lakshmi Ajitha

Take The Best Route Forward! Lakshmi Ajitha Gets Healthier With GOQii

Being healthy is a consistent effort. No amount of crash dieting or overworking yourself at the gym for a few months can resolve health issues which have piled up over months and years. Many people find it difficult to follow a healthy routine. Sometimes, all … [Read More...]

Shreyans Ravrani

Shreyans Ravrani Shifts From Illness to Wellness!

At the age of 38, Shreyans Ravrani led a lifestyle which wasn’t very different from the working professionals of his age group. As a Gujarati, his diet involved regular consumption of oily food and sweets, something he never realized can be detrimental to his health. He didn’t maintain portion control nor eat a balanced meal. […]

Sangeeta Jajodia

Sangeeta Jajodia goes from a Simple Housewife to a Super Woman!

They say being a housewife is a full time job, and quite rightly so. As one among many, 52 year old Sangeeta Jajodia from Mumbai, led a very busy life. Her routine revolved around tending to the needs and demands of her grown up children, cooking, cleaning and regular household chores. During her free time, […]

Shreejit Nandkumar

Shreejit Nandkumar Reaches His Health Goal With Determination and Consistency!

Losing weight or getting fit isn’t just about hitting the gym regularly or having a fitness regime. Pumping iron by itself cannot guarantee sustainable weight loss. It needs to be supplemented with a proper diet as well. One of our players, Shreejit Nandkumar, learned this little fact that changed his life forever.   A 47 year […]

  • HOME
  • HEALTHY LIVING
  • FITNESS
  • HEALTHY RECIPES
  • USER STORIES
  • KARMA
  • BUY GOQii

Copyright ©2016 GOQii