Indian sports is aspiring to take wings and reach higher levels of excellence in the global arena. The government understands the enormous power of sports, as it aims to project the country’s might by hosting the Olympics, an event that unites the whole world.

The new Sports Governance Bill, tabled in Parliament on Wednesday, attempts to cut though the complicated web that has been clutching and holding back Indian sports from realising its full potential. The objective is to ease the path of the young athletes and help them reach global glory.

The power of sports is often noticed and understood through the influence of sports stars who can engage the world and drive any campaign to great success.

Of course, it is a long journey for a young athlete to grow into a star. That hard path with many hurdles is less known to the world, as it is often unlit.

It calls for real commitment in the glamour-driven world, where every investment seeks multiple levels of returns, to do the hard work at the grass roots level and drive the youth to higher standards and lead them towards the best stages in sports.

A global leader in lighting, Signify has been doing that quietly for some years now, lending a new dimension to the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative, by lighting up nearly 200 play grounds so far and sowing seeds for a sports culture in society in a significant way. What stands out is the way the company joined hands with the Brahmaputra Volleyball League (BVL) in Assam, founded and managed by the former national volleyball captain, Abhijit Bhattacharya, driving the vision to its fulfilment.

The BVL was launched in 2020 with the idea of building a strong sporting culture in rural Assam, and offer a platform for the children, passionate about playing volleyball. It started with 50 teams and 400 children. Thanks to Signify jumping in and joining the movement, installing lights in 20 grounds at first, and then stepping it up to 120 grounds, after seeing the transformative power of sport under lights in rural environment, the BVL became a roaring success. Abhijit recalls how the league used to take five months to complete about 780 matches. “The children return from school around 3.30 p.m. They got to play only for an hour or so before darkness,” he said.

With its Khel Jyoti scheme, Signify ensured extended hours of play for the children. “Now we could complete 783 matches in three months. With increased practice time and better preparation, there is a 100% representation of BVL players in the under-17 and under-14 teams of Assam,” said Abhijit.

“We carried out the installation of lights in two phases with a strong focus on impact and long-term sustainability. In the first phase, 20 rural volleyball centres were illuminated with permanent 10-metre high masts and high quality floodlights. These centres were selected on the basis of regular participation of young athletes, presence of coaches, equal participation of girls, a dedicated registered local club to take care of the installed lighting system, and the overall performance in the earlier seasons of BVL,” said Nikhil Gupta, the Marketing and CSR head of Signify.

The encouraging results after a careful study of the impact of the lights helped Signify get into the 
BVL in a big way.

“The impact assessment was very encouraging. Children, especially girls, were now able to practice for three to four extra hours in the evening. Many girls started attending evening coaching sessions, and the community began actively participating by coming out to watch the matches. The lighting infrastructure also served other purposes, such as hosting community celebrations like Bihu. That made us support 100 more volleyball grounds with more than 1200 high quality sports floodlights, bringing a wider reach and greater impact across rural Assam,” said Nikhil.

“The BVL now has 401 teams and we have seen more than 10,000 children play the game in Assam in the last few years,” said Abhijit with pride.

Care had to be taken to ensure the sustainability of the lit up project.

“A proper service chain was created and the responsible teams were briefed about the methods and procedures. The local volleyball clubs or committees now take care of the electricity bills and maintenance of the lighting systems, promoting local ownership and long-term use of the infrastructure,” said Nikhil.

If volleyball in the remote parts of Assam became an inspiring story, Signify turned its focus on many other games, especially athletics, to light up the track of many promising talent.

It was Mundgod, a small town in Karnataka, home of the Siddi tribe, a African-origin community with natural talent and exceptional athletic abilities, that benefited from the lighting up drive. Young athletes from this part faced challenges due to limited access to proper training facilities.

Training

Bridges of Sports (BoS), an NGO founded by Nitish Chiniwar, chose to take up the task of training about 50 young athletes from the community in various track and field events. The community ground lacked lighting and that hurdle was crossed with the help of Khel Jyoti.

Nayana Kokare is a shining example for the Siddi community, with her inspiring journey, as she has already won a relay medal for the country in the Asian under-20 athletics championships. Nitish throws more light on her path.

“Nayana is from a Gowli tribal family. Her father is a farmer and mother is a homemaker. Nayana stood out for her dedication and determination, by becoming the first girl from her village to complete 12th grade, a big milestone for her and the community. She was 14 when we identified her talent and took her into our athlete development program. She has been given full support for training, education and life skills. Over the years, her progress has been remarkable, from the State, Zonal, to national and international levels. She was fourth in 200 metres in Asia, and had won a 4 x 100 metre relay medal in the Asian under-20 championship in Korea,” said Nitish.

There is more to the success story, and Nayana is not alone. “Today, Nayana is part of our Performance Program in the United Kingdom, training under some of the best coaches, physiotherapists, psychologists, and nutritionists professionals who have helped athletes reach the Olympics and other international events. She is pursuing a course in Sports Management, which will lead her to a brighter future,” Nitish said.

“Through our grass-roots mode, we now engage with over 70% of Siddi athletes across many villages, providing them professional coaching, educational pathways and mentorship. The transformation is visible, not just in medals and achievements, but in confidence, discipline and aspiration. One of the best examples is Nimeksha Siddi, who is also now part of our programme in the UK, along with Nayana. She is receiving elite training and pursuing higher education. Both girls are training hard to qualify for international competitions, including the Olympics, hungry to show the world what is possible, when opportunity meets belief,” said Nitish, who states with contentment, “we help young leaders own their future”.

Nitish does acknowledge the role of the lights, in lending a better pathway for the young aspirants.

“One of the biggest improvements in our training infrastructure has been the installation of floodlights through the Khel Jyoti initiative. These high-quality lights have made a real difference in how and when our athletes train. In a place like Mundgod, where it is dark early in the morning or after sunset, having access to lighted tracks means athletes don’t have to depend on day light.

They can train before school, or late in the evening, helping them stay consistent and focused. The impact of the lights goes beyond the athletes. These lights help host local tournaments, night-time training, and village sports events, encouraging more community participation,” said Nitish.

It is not just the rural parts that get support from Khel Jyoti. If the criteria are fulfilled, any scheme can get support in any part of the country.

Sudeva, which scouts football talent across the country and trains them in Civil Lines, Delhi, has got the lighting support. Rani Laxmibai Sports Academy, in Siwan, Bihar, a football and handball centre, run by Sanjay Pathak, a government school teacher, has got lighting support. Over 40 girls from the academy have competed at the national and international levels.

Likewise, Neelam Sahu who has been coaching girls in kabaddi, and helping them reach national and international levels for more than two decades, got the lighting support for her centre at Sarvodaya Kanya
Vidyalaya in Dwarka, Delhi. The Har Sahay Inter College in Kanpur, that trains boys and girls in kho-kho got the support. The players from this centre have competed in the Ultimate Kho-Kho league, and also the World Cup held this year.

New initiatives

Signify continues to expand the Khel Jyoti programme with new initiatives. There is a focus on improving sports facilities in Punjab’s Schools of Eminence. In a partnership with Hoshiarpur District administration, there is a drive to light up 17 playgrounds that have strong sports training program.

“The selection of grounds was based on their use for regular training sessions, higher athlete participation and the availability of professional coaches. These schools have a history of producing national and international athletes, making them ideal candidates for the initiative. It will support young talent in 
Hoshiarpur to reach full potential,” said Nikhil Gupta.

Even as it engages with former cricket captain Rahul Dravid through a television campaign, “Hum raaton mein sooraj ugaate hain”, and lights up the prominent cricket grounds in Dharamshala, Ahmedabad and Navi Mumbai that host international matches, Signify is categorical that no region or game is beyond its support.

In fact, the athletics field of the Inspire Institute of Sports (IIS) that is professionally run by JSW Sports, also got lighting support to help elite athletes reach Olympic standards. It has been a satisfying journey for Khel Jyoti so far, even as it ventures further to light up many more sporting arenas, helping many athletes build a shining career.

“Investing in programmes focused on sports fosters the holistic development of society and the sporting ecosystem. We strengthen community bonds by encouraging youth participation and instil qualities of discipline and teamwork. The drive builds a healthier society by promoting physical activity. It creates a robust sporting culture in the country, paving the way for future champions and inspiring the next generation,” said Nikhil.

Through Khel Jyoti, Signify indeed captures the essence of the mantra, “Tamasoma jyotir gamaya”.

From darkness, lead me to light!