How selfless can a person be? We have seen numerous individuals in Indian football who have dedicated themselves to the greater good of the game. Their work is driven by passion rather than the balance sheet. They continue to invest their time, effort, and money in Indian football even without any financial return. In Jammu, one such visionary coach is fighting a lone battle to put his city on India’s football map. Meet Arun, the man behind Param Football Club.
“When I played for the senior state team of Jammu and Kashmir (Santosh Trophy), there were only two in our squad who were from Jammu. Rest almost all were from Kashmir. That’s when I realised that something needs to be done for football in the Jammu region”, said Arun.
Not many talk about this in public, however, there exists a divide in J&K football. The major chunk of football activities are concentrated in the Kashmir region and Jammu is devoid of any significant football action. Most of the players picked for the state team are from the Kasmir-based clubs.
Determined to change the footballing landscape of the Jammu region, Arun resigned from his job and invested all his savings in his new project: Param Football Club.
“Paramatma” means the supreme soul, and “Param” means absolute truth, divine, or supreme reality. He wanted to make his club and his players the best and hence the name was chosen.
“Football needs to be decentralised. Even in Jammu, the matches happen near the parade ground only. Players from districts like Samba and Kathua also deserve opportunities”, Arun added.
With the Jammu district league not held for the past 6 years and the state league not being conducted for the past 3 years, the clubs of Jammu are struggling due to a lack of competitive matches. The Christian community of Jammu organises an annual tournament, but beyond that, the picture is grim.
Due to a tussle with the Jammu District Football Association, Arun relocated his academy to Hiranagar Tehsil in Kathua district. The real development of Param FC started after that.
“It took us some time to settle down, we were determined nevertheless. We got accredited by AIFF and our academy got one-star accreditation in 2018 so that we could play in U13 and U15 youth league. Most of the boys are from the Kathua district itself in my youth setup”, Arun sounded proud.
“I have to travel with my young players to Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh for competitive matches. Because we have to pay a hefty fee to play in Kashmir Premier League (league of Kashmir-based clubs)as we are outsiders, that is not an option for us”.
Previously, in winter, the Srinagar-based clubs would come down to Srinagar and play tournaments in Jammu. However, that is not happening now.
Arun started the women’s team 3 years back he claims his team has the best bunch of talents in Jammu and Kashmir.
“When we started, these girls didn’t even know how to kick the ball. At present, five of our girls are on the state team. That’s the change we brought in three years.”
Apart from the senior team, there are U15 and U13 teams in the men’s category. Unlike other academies, Param FC has a different structure. Most of their coaches are their former academy graduates. Some of their graduates have become national referees also.
“We need to have a whole ecosystem at the place to sustain. I have a C License in coaching. Many of my boys have obtained D Licenses and four of them have secured C Licenses. One of the top referees of J&K, Aman Sudhan is also from our setup.“
Currently, Arun is working in the Army Public School in Samba. He is also running a gym and a small fast-food outlet. He is reinvesting whatever income generated through these avenues back into football.
“I started a gym because it will help my football project as well. The fast food outlet is run by some of my players who don’t have much income. I hardly take any money from them. My whole life revolves around football and I don’t know anything else to do. I intend to make the path clear for the young prodigies of my region to reach the pinnacle of football. They shouldn’t suffer what I suffered when I was a player.”
The determined man wants the name of Jammu to echo in the Indian football circuit in the next five years.
