Riding to fame on a saddle-less pony

JORHAT, February 5: Ever cared to horse around on a saddle-less pony? More so, spurning it on to gallop at full speed? Out of this world and dangerous though it may seem for most, it is but child's play for the hardy and skilful Mishing jockeys in and around Jorhat, adept as they are at manoeuvring these 'biological running machines' as per their whims and fancies. Trained to obey their master command through lightning-fast reflexes in the form of toe and heel twitches which are 'invisible' for normal onlookers, these 'local rodeos' can be seen performing as the annual Jorhat Races 2001 commences at the Gymkhana Club field here at Khelmati from February 6. With the week-long extravaganza slated to start from February 5, racing days have been earmarked for February 6, 8 and 10, while non-racing days on February 5, 7 and 9 will include events like ladies football, car rally, tennis, golf and cycle polo, to be rounded off with musical evenings. As non-racing events will be participated in by team comprising of tea executives and their families, race days will witness Mishing jockeys along with their ponies from Malowkhat, Banhphola, Jhanjimukh, Sengeliati and Kolbari areas displaying their equestrian skills. The State Governor Lt Gen (Retd) SK Sinha too has consented to grace the occasion as patron and hand over the traditional Governors' Cup to the winner on the final day, i.e., on February 10. With an average of eight to nine races per day on specified dates, the winners will have for grab both cash prizes and trophies, sponsored by tea companies and presented by the race committee. For the first time this year, Pepsi Foods Ltd has chipped in by sponsoring a cup. For the record, the circumference of the race track is one km long and has been evenly rollered, while fences on the sided have been freshly painted and braced up for the occasion. The mainly Mishing community participants will be provided free fooding and lodging facilities by the club during their stay, according to the Honorary race secretary since the past 18 years, BC Mahanta, who has been singularly slogging it out to ensure that the annual event does not have any hitches. Two free cinema shows on the final day have also been arranged for the participants, he added. "The proceeds of the races are spent in charity," Mahanta told The Assam Tribune. Assistance in the form of CIS bundles have in recent times been distributed among needy and deserving organisations of participating villages, namely Kopahtali Mishing Gaon Namghar, Sarighoria Mishing Gaon Hari Mandir and Namghar, Malowkhat ME Girls' School at the Kolbari area, Golapi Primary School at Kareng Gaon, Malowkhat Banhphola area, and Alengmora Mishing Gaon Namghar, to name just a few besides financial help not below Rs 5,000 to the leprosy colony of the Christian Medical Centre at the Jail Road area here. Items of daily use such as desks, benches and other office paraphernalia have also been donated to Prerona Spastic Society of Cinnamara from the sale proceeds. However, plans are afoot from this year onwards to take up only one institution at a time and help see it through with its construction work by bearing the entire cost, Mahanta said. With the Jorhat Gymkhana Club established way back in 1876 by the then British Planters as a recreation centre and a popular 'watering hole' with its well-stocked bar to wet their parched throats, especially on week-ends, this 'remnant of the Raj' comprises of a sprawling golf course, tennis court, facilities to play table tennis and billiards, besides enjoying cinema shows. The races which were first started on January 16, 1877, was pioneered by an Englishman, Late CG Showers, who happened to be the first race committee secretary. The Prince's Cup was also instituted during those days. Though it was an all-White affair then and included golf tourneys, polo and even rugby matches, however, the gala event today is ably managed by ten stewards, with noted planter-industrialist Hemendra Prasad Barooah as president, Aboni Borgohain as vice-president and BC Mahanta Honorary secretary, besides others. "It is only after putting our heads together and meticulous planning thereafter, followed by toil for roughly over two months that the preparations can be deemed complete," Mahanta said. During the 'good old days', thoroughbreds of Arabian descent were imported by the Englishmen, who even took a keen interest in breeding them though after 1938 horses and ponies were brought from Manipur, Assam Rifles, the Territorial Army and lately even from the Police Training Centre at Dergaon. Earlier, participants made a beeline to the races from as far as Calcutta. However, as the race courses closed down at Tezpur, Dibrugarh and Shillong, the yearly event at Jorhat gained in prominence not only within Assam, but in the entire Northeast. Recalling the past, Mahanta hastened to add that the first two Indians who were appointed stewards in 1946 were late tea planter PK Barooah and Raisahab Jitendra Kumar Doss, both hailing from the city. Though the Jorhat Races still merit recognition as a significant crowdpuller, yet it seems to have lost a bit of its earlier sheen, devoid as it is of its share of its thoroughbreds. The event even experienced a jolt when no races were held between 1991 and 1994. Had it not been kickstarted once again in 1995 by 16 racing enthusiast, the over 124-year-old traditional event would surely have met a 'premature' death. Expecting participation by local sports persons in the near future, Mahanta, however, voiced doubts whether the unique event which till date is peculiar to Jorhat alone, could ever be continued unhindered in the days ahead, as the race track and field in question have been encroached upon by promoters of a proposed housing complex and permission from the court has been necessitated since the past few years prior to holding the 'rodeo' of the East, which has by now become a part of local folklore.