Tokyo: Ravi Kumar Dahiya etched his name into the history books when he grabbed silver in men’s 57kg wrestling event at the Tokyo Olympics going down fighting against Zavur Uguev of Russia on Thursday. He may not have won India’s first Olympic gold in the sport, but the medal could be pivotal for the upliftment of his village that needs recognition.
Hailing from the humble backgrounds of Nahri, a remote village in Haryana, Dahiya had to fight it out with difficulties to find the basic needs of daily life. As per sources, the village with a population of around 15000 people gets just eight hours of electricity a day – two in the morning, and six in the evening.
Ravi Kumar Dahiya – #IND's second wrestler to win an Olympic #silver medal 👏👏👏
Take a bow, champ! 🙌#Tokyo2020 | #UnitedByEmotion | #StrongerTogether | #Wrestling pic.twitter.com/Ggy5ILaeEv
— #Tokyo2020 for India (@Tokyo2020hi) August 5, 2021
There’s even a scarcity of government hospitals in the village since the nearest one is in Sonipat which is quite far from that area. However, the residents are hopeful that Dahiya’s triumph can attract the officials to bring development to their neighborhoods which they had demanded for years now.
“I hope his medal brings 24×7 electricity supply and proper road. We would like to believe that my son’s medals would bring development to the village,” said Dahiya’s father who was a constant support during his initial days.
But Dahiya is not the only example. Assam’s Lovlina Borgohain, who secured a bronze in boxing, had no proper road in his native Baromukhia village in the Golaghat district. After her triumph, the Assam government announced that her native place will get proper cemented roads.
An announcement of a similar trajectory for development is also expected for Nahri village. Dahiya turned many heads when he qualified for the Games in 2019.
