NEWSLETTER

November 2016 / MUMBAI SPECIAL

PRINCIPAL PARTNERS

Cover picture 18 November Indian Gymkhana, King’s Circle No need for DRS as Mumbai’s smallest umpire takes charge.

Project Front Foot (India)

The Dharavi Cricket Academy The new season for the Dharavi Cricket Academy – our eighth on the ground in Mumbai – began on Thursday 3 November. It proved a heady mix too with the cricket combined with schools holidays and lingering Diwali celebrations. The current construction work around the Gymkhana plus the havoc from the recent monsoon detracted little from the occasion as kids, coaches, and cows soon got into their stride.

A week into proceedings and it was time for the official handover of the new season’s kit. It was also time to introduce our new UK partner, the Lancashire County Cricket Club Foundation, to the Dharavi children. Project Front Foot joined forces with the Foundation at a meeting in the Old Traf ford pavilion on 22 August. The remit of the new partnership is to take the Foundation’s mantra - Inspiring Communities Through Cricket - into schools and projects in Mumbai and around Maharashtra. The partnership agreement was signed under the batting Honours Board with the ink still drying on Joe Root’s 254 against Pakistan. These are intoxicating days for the city of Manchester with Project Front Foot joining such luminaries as Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola; from the Special One to the Recycling one!

Of the seven bags of kit loaded aboard BA 199 on 31 October three – one each for our various age groups – were destined for the Dharavi Cricket Academy. It was my pleasure, ably assisted by kids and coaches, to complete the official handover on a sticky Mumbai Thursday morning.

In a recent post on the Lancashire CCC website, Foundation Director, Sandy Mitchell said “We are delighted to be once again supporting Project Front Foot, providing the finance, kit and equipment they need to make a difference to the lives of more disadvantaged young people through cricket. Our work in the North West is already well established and by partnering up with Project Front Foot we are able to continue to have an impact both at home and abroad”. Coaching Format Our coaching schedule remains unchanged from last season. We continue to coach three days a week – Tuesday, Thursday and Friday – during the November to May season; morning sessions are from 07.30 to 09.00 and afternoons from 16.30 to 18.00. The coaching duties are again shared between head coaches, Bhavana Patil and Harshad Bhojnaik, and assistants Janardan and Amar. This outstanding coaching quartet are now in their sixth season with the project.

As in previous years, fitness tests are conducted for all age groups at both the beginning and end of the season. One to one player-coach discussions will be held mid-season to chart the players’ progress. The Player of the Month awards, much coveted last season, will continue along with an end of season function in Dharavi where the Player of the Season will be announced. Our coaches will be arranging competitive matches each month during the season, one for each age group and, where possible, to enter PFF representative sides in local tournaments. The intake for the 2016-2017 season was set at 85 children. November Player of the Month Awards

Morning session

In displaying early season form and an all-round helpfulness towards fellow players, coaches and assistants, the awards went to L-R (standing): U12 Sahil Bhaout U14 Anuragh Dhumale U16 Akshay Chitroda

Afternoon session

On the day, winners were presented with a T-shirt by PFF founder, Vic Mills; with certificates of merit to follow. Richly deserved, the awards went to L-R (standing): U12 Yash Bhandare U14 Santosh Jaiswar U16 Pinkesh Gupta

Gymkhana Ground

Cricket grounds come in all shapes, sizes and conditions. On-going construction work at the Indian Gymkhana sees the ground qualify on all counts. The plan is to incorporate tennis courts, a volleyball area, and football pitch, leaving the centre area free for cricket. It is, as the pictures show, a considerable work in progress. The southern end of the ground has altered beyond all recognition. Floodlight pylons and a set of discarded goalposts litter the outfield. A metre wide trench separates construction from cricket.

At the northern end, meanwhile, a forlorn and forgotten roller stands knee deep in grass. The centre wicket area remains intact and relatively playable. It was under such conditions, and to little or no fanfare, that our eighth season opened. Oblivious of the conditions, the kids were just happy to be back playing, with coaches who cared, and on recreational space that is becoming increasingly rare in this construction mad city. The message from Matunga, then, is that come construction hell or monsoonal high water - we’re back. LET’S PLAY CRICKET!

The Team at Reality Gives Project Front Foot is blessed with a first-rate team at our partner NGO, Reality Gives. They run the day-to-day Academy business along with liaising with our main sponsor Allcargo Logistics and our coaching staff. Huge thanks to Lethy, Ravi, Jyoti, Sulam, Andrew, Asim and Mayur for all their hard work on the project’s behalf. Allcargo Logistics

Our decision to send kit by sea with the help of ECU-LINE and Allcargo Logistics meant several visits to their headquarters in Santacruz. During one such visit PFF founder, Vic Mills, was fortunate to spend twenty minutes in the company of Allcargo chairman, Mr S K Shetty. A delightful man, with more than a passing interest in cricket, he was happy to talk cricket and charity in equal measure. The meeting proved an ideal opportunity to formally thank the chairman and Allcargo for their continued support of the Dharavi Cricket Academy.

Rural Schools Initiative

While the Dharavi Cricket Academy remains our flagship project, there is little doubt that the growth area within Project Front Foot is our Rural Schools Initiative. During November, with the help of our three main partners, we were able to deliver kit packages to an unprecedented twenty-five schools - a four fold increase from the previous year. With resources scarce in the education system, books must always come before bats and balls. In providing kit packages of plastic wicket sets, bats and balls, we try to bridge that gap between work and play, in the process assisiting the all-round development of young children. Lions Club Dahisar On Tuesday 15 November PFF spent a day with the Lions Club of Dahisar. We visited four schools in slum areas. Lions Club members were on hand to conduct the various handing over ceremonies and translate where necessary. A fun day and an ideal start to our Kit Aid programme.

Galaxy Surfactants In joining forces with the Galaxy Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) team we were again able to efficiently dovetail their work in rural schools. On Saturday 26 November Ramu and I teamed up with Adarsh to take kit to two schools – ZP Primary School, Taloja Majkur village and Sidhi Karavale village school – and to an aid project working in the Swami Nagar slum in Ambernath village, east of Mumbai.

In a new initiative this visit PFF founder, Vic Mills, with a little help from translators, conducted mini coaching sessions with the youngsters.

Our kit delivery trip coincided with Constitution Day across India. Morning schools marked the occasion with outdoor lessons and essay writing. All was industry and order, until, that is, PFF turned up. The before and after pictures (below) offer further proof that Project Front Foot reaches those schools and children that others can’t.

The final visit of the day saw a long walk across railway tracks and deep into the Swami Nagar slum. The greeting on arrival was noisy, chaotic and very special. Once again the smiles said it all as we handed over our kit package.

Forty hours later we were back on the road heading north to Tarapur and a frenetic kit drop that included four rural schools. With Ramakant joining Ramu and I en route we navigated flyovers and toll booths before reaching the open road. More than equal to the task, Chand went into overdrive happy to use all three lanes and generally lay waste to anything resembling a Highway Code.

Having displayed admirable F1 skills on the drive up, Chand now became more circumspect as the roads narrowed and, after the monsoon rains, became more rutted. It was well worth the effort, though, as we were met by a welcoming committee of teachers and pupils at the Shaskiya Madyamik Ashramshala.

Our final destination was the Vatsalya Prathamik Ashramshala where pupils collected nearby bougainvillea for the presentation bouquets.

My thanks, in planning the day, to Galaxy’s finest: Ramu, Ramakant, Milind and Mr Satawee. And, of course, to Chand who once again expertly negotiated all manner of terrain including the return stampede into town. Allcargo Logistics As part of our Rural Schools Initiative, Project Front Foot and Allcargo Logistics CSR team will join forces in December to provide cricket kit to six country schools around the port of Nhava Sheva. With the nominated schools having little in the way of sporting resources, this joint venture will assist the all-round development of the pupils. It had been hoped to complete the kit handover in November, but problems with our shipment of sea freight meant a postponement until December. FemaleCricket.com Part of the above delayed shipment includes eleven bags of kit for Vishal Yadav and his team at FemaleCricket.com. This collaboration will provide valuable Kit Aid for women’s cricket in India. This is a new joint venture that we hope will empower many girls and young women in the world of cricket.

Project Front Foot (UK)

Project Partners None of the above could have been accomplished without the support of our UK partners. Please take a bow: Sandy Mitchell and the Lancashire County Cricket Club Foundation Steve Archer and the Yorkshire Cricket Board Dave Pemberton and the Lord’s Taverners John Ellison and the Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club Peter Mason and the Forty Club Mike Wisner and the Nottingham Tennis Centre Laura Phillips and British Airways The Jenkins Family and Low Moor HT Cricket Club Neil Lockwood and the Lindum Cricket Club PFF as Donor In last month’s newsletter we included a section detailing PFF’s work as a donor. Surplus clothing in this and previous summers has enabled us to assist other UK charities. As a follow up, I received this message in early November. I would just like to say thank you for donating the sports wear clothes to Slough’s most vulnerable children and families. The clothes have been warmly received by the children some of whom have very little when they first become looked after. Slough Children’s Services Trust is committed to making children ‘Safe, Secure and Successful’ this easier to achieve when we are supported by the wider community too. So again – Thank you Family Support Worker – Fostering – Slough Children’s Services Trust

On my last full day in Mumbai, at about the same time that I handed over the remaining items of kit to the local BJ Home for young children (three small plastic bats and ten tennis balls) PFF volunteers, Tim and Ron, deposited two boxes of donated adult clothing at the Slough Centre for the Homeless. Both donations were welcomed with open arms albeit for different reasons. PFF Picture Archive

Launched in January, this archive enables us to take a fond look back at the project’s early days. This month’s picture dates back to 26 November 2009 and is proof positive that the Gymkhana ground has seen better days. And, I have no doubt, will do so again. The current construction work and ground planning belies the fact that with time and money the mali (groundsman) can produce a perfectly playable wicket and square. It may not be for some time, but with a little TLC the recovery qualities of the soil can produce remarkable results.

Front Foot Forum For more details and pictures of Project Front Foot’s busy November please click on our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/projectfrontfoot/. Acknowledgements If my thirty days in Mumbai went to confirm anything, it was that you really are only as strong as your support team. As exhausting as the weeks proved, we were able to achieve so much with both the Dharavi children and through our Rural Schools Initiative. My thanks to all those in the UK who made this possible and to our teams in Dharavi, Santacruz, Matunga, Navi Mumbai, Dahisar and Tarapur. And finally ….

The combined efforts and expertise of ECU-LINE UK, Allcargo Logistics, and Hindustan Cargo Ltd enabled Project Front Foot to bring an unprecedented amount of UK-donated kit to Mumbai this autumn. The enterprise proved a steep learning curve for the project trustees. After many meetings, phone calls, emails, and much documentation we were able to satisfy Customs officials and bring the kit into the country. It will be distributed throughout December and January. When a problem arises you find a solution!

Vic Mills. Berlin. December 2016.