No lessons learned: Boxing event goes on without safety checks

MADURAI: The death of 14-year-old M Mareeswari, who fainted after a round of

boxing

at the

Khelo India Games

in Tuticorin, and passed away on the way to the hospital, has failed to shake up the

Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu

(SDAT). The

Madurai

leg of the event which concluded on Monday showed the same disregard for

safety

as in Tuticorin.

The event was conducted at the Madurai Race Stadium and saw the participation of several students from rural areas. However, the boxing match was conducted inside a ring constructed using concrete. The ridges at the corners exposed the participants to injury. Moreover, the competition was conducted at 1pm, the hottest time of the day.

The child's death during the event sponsored by the central government has rattled the boxing community. "It is the same everywhere. I have participated in many boxing competitions at several locations in the state. Only in Chennai, the matches take place under a roof and adequate safety measures are in place," said a boxing student seeking anonymity.

"I know that the participants are putting their lives at risk because there are no safety measures in place. But we have no option. Even if we raise the issue, they won't pay heed to our concerns," said K Meghala, a resident of Ellis Nagar.

A school headmaster said that at least a tent could have been erected which would have protected the competitors from the heat. "I don't know why they did not schedule the event either in the morning or evening when the weather is more favourable. There was no drinking water near the ring too," he said.

The organisers said that they had an ambulance on standby but when TOI checked, there was just a van with a first-aid box. This is far from adequate to treat any serious injury.

Madurai district sports and youth welfare officer, S Murugan, said that they were conducting the event with whatever facilities were made available to them. The welfare of the participants had been thoroughly taken care of, he said. There were more than 500 participants on Sunday, the inaugural day of the competition and more than 1,200 on the concluding day. He brushed aside the death in Tuticorin as a one-off incident.