Karve, who played hockey against the legendary Dhyan Chand, breathed his last at Mangeet Hospital in the city at 4 am. He was undergoing treatment for kidney failure and died a bachelor at 84.

Around 500 people, including college staff and present and former hockey players, joined the funeral procession. The college observed two minutes' silence before the start of exam on Tuesday. Before embarking on the funeral procession, his body was taken for a round of the ground as a tribute to his soul.

Karve's death is a huge loss to Gujarat and to hockey in general, as his contribution to the state in the field of hockey is immense and unmatched.

Popularly known as Mama, Karve coached over 10,000 hockey players, including national players, ever since he joined Gujarat College in 1958.

Born in a village in Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra, he arrived in the city in 1955. By then, the magic he wielded on the field with his stick was well-known. Diminutive but mentally strong, he kept the game alive in Gujarat since then.

“Mama was passionate about hockey. I have seen very few players dedicated to the sport like him,” said Jwalant Bhatt, the incumbent hockey coach of the college.

The 45-year-old Bhatt was also coached by Mama. “Whatever I achieved in hockey, it's because of him. He shaped me as a national player. He was a hard taskmaster, very strict. I still remember he used to scold me as I used to held the stick with my left hand instead of the conventional right,” said Bhatt, who has been playing hockey since the age of four.

Bhatt recalls Mama as a very humble person as he goes down memory lane to bring back the images from the days of yore. “He used to work in a mill. And he would spend all his earnings on his students. He was very generous. He would go out of the way to help others. He would often pay the hostel charges of many students,” said Bhatt.

But after his mill was shut down in the early 1980s, he couldn't help students financially anymore. But he continued to share his knowledge of the game with them. The college's hockey ground was Karve's second home.