Six years on, Indian hockey star Yuvraj Walmiki still waiting for government to deliver promised house
Indian sports is filled with stories of athletes reaching the top level after braving insurmountable odds and making the nation proud with their extraordinary perseverance and dedication. There have been stories of players coming from extreme poverty who have toiled day and night not only for themselves but also for their families, whose secure future is what they are fighting for.
One such tale is of hockey star Yuvraj Walmiki, who hails from a poor family of six in Mumbai, and spent his childhood living in a garage where they had no electricity, water or even a bed. Despite this, he pursued his passion for hockey and went on to represent India, amassing over 60 caps for the nation.
He was part of the Indian side that played in the 2014 Hockey World Cup and has also won the Hockey India League with the Delhi Waveriders in the league's second edition. His brother Davinder too has represented the national side and was part of the contingent that participated at the Olympic Games in Rio last year.
The forward recently, on Thursday, took to Twitter to share a story of how he has still not received a house from the Maharashtra government, which was promised nearly six years ago to him. He started with this tweet:
He then went on to mention that he was promised a house by the state government all the way back in 2011, but the wait still remains on for the star player.
He then went on to narrate how he has given his all for the sake of the nation and amassed over 60 caps, but still, has to wait for the promise to be honoured. He added that he is only asking for something that he his asking for something that was promised to him and for the concerned people to help.
He added that his family has seen a lot of struggles and that when the house was promised, it was a massive ray of hope for them. However, the situation has not changed and it continues to remains so. He then added: