Students at a popular Mumbai college, have been voicing their concerns regarding the limited sports opportunities available on campus. They are urging the college to organise more in-house sports practices.
Currently, Sophia College for Women, Grant Road, offers in-house training for fencing and basketball, with fencing being the most popular among students, according to the students. However, several students have expressed the need for new coaches for additional sports like athletics, football, boxing, kickboxing and volleyball.
A student, preferring to be anonymous, points out that students of several Mumbai colleges have access to several sports activities regardless of their career aspirations. She shared that she wants Sophia College to also offer similar options to its students. "Other colleges provide a range of sports activities for their students to choose from. It would be beneficial for Sophia to provide these options as well. We can learn new things and explore," she said.
Another student, also preferring to be anonymous, criticised the college's sports administration for focusing solely on fencing practices. "We've talked with the sports administration about this, but there's been no effort to improve sports facilities beyond fencing," she alleged.
"I have to travel to Mumbai University's ground to train for 100m athletics with an external club, which is time-consuming and tiring," added another student. "Having training facilities on campus would greatly benefit us," she added.
Students also talked about the benefits that they are missing out on, like getting grace marks for sports achievements. "If the college provided proper training for various sports, we could earn grace marks, which would be a significant incentive," said a student, choosing to stay anonymous.
Shruti Kadam, the sports department manager at the college, provided the college’s perspective on the matter. She highlighted the challenges faced by Sophia College in expanding sports opportunities. "Sophia College wishes to promote all sports. We cannot have in-house practices due to the lack of a dedicated ground. We have to rent a place for practice, but not many students are keen on travelling far. The ground is the major issue," Kadam said.
The college spans approximately 4 acres. This land is mainly occupied by the college building, gymkhana, hostel, and canteen, leaving no ground for sports practice, as mentioned on the college's website.
"We are trying to provide the best opportunities, but it will take time. Slowly and steadily, we plan to give more sports opportunities to our students once we figure out or at least arrange a space for the training," Kadam added.
