(TOI Photo)

CHENNAI: When former India captain Renedy Singh visited the house of Jeakson Singh Thaunaojam , one of the eight Manipur footballers who have been selected in the India team for the U-17 World Cup, he saw mixed emotions in the teenager's family. While there was joy that Jeakson will don the India jersey in the tournament, there was also a tinge of sadness about the fact that they didn't have the finances to go to New Delhi to see the teenager play.

Jeakson's family wasn't the only one. When Renedy visited India captain Amarjit Singh Kiyam 's house, he witnessed a similar situation. Renedy, who comes from a humble Manipuri family himself, identified with the situation and immediately called his friend and MLA RK Imo Singh seeking support from the Manipur state government.

The young MLA, who is also the son-in-law of chief minister Nongthombam Biren Singh , acted promptly. The Manipur government announced a cash reward of Rs 5 lakh for each of the eight footballers apart from sponsoring one to-and-fro ticket for a family member of each of the footballers.

"I went to Jeakson's house to greet the family on Thursday. I learnt that his father is severely ill and the family spends around Rs 8000 per month for his treatment. Jeakson comes from a humble background and these expenses take a toll on the family. In fact, when Jeakson wants to come back home from training, his family would always feel the cash crunch. With poor train connectivity in Manipur, the family would have to bear a cost of around Rs 20,000 for flight tickets. Things weren't any different for the families of Amarjit, Boris Singh Thangjam and others," Renedy told TOI from Imphal on Saturday.

None of the families have seen these players turn out for India. "They wanted to travel to New Delhi but couldn't because of fund crunch. It really shook me. Being a Manipuri and a former footballer, I felt responsibility of doing something for these families. So I called Imo and I am thankful that prompt action was taken," said Renedy.

The help didn't stop there. On learning about the families' misery, Tata Trusts, which run around 80 football schools in Manipur and Mizoram, also extended their support. Renedy said that Tata Trusts are also providing financial help apart from sponsoring a to-and-fro trip for two members of each family.

Biswanath Sinha, Tata Trusts Zonal Head (East and Northeast), said that they will also take care of their lodging and other miscellaneous expenses. "We have been working at the grassroot level in the Northeast for the past two years. When we learnt about this issue from Renedy, we didn't think twice. We will sponsor tickets for two family members. If the family wants us to sponsor tickets for one or two more persons, we are ready. These families are supposed to stay at Manipur Bhavan. If they cannot find rooms, we will take care of their lodging as well as bear the miscellaneous expenses," Sinha said.

Sinha also informed that this initiative is not Manipur specific and if needy Indian players from other states make a request, they will definitely look into it.

