History was inscribed in golden letters when, for the first time, the Indian women's hockey team struck gold in the Asian Games. After tears of pride that rolled down these sportswomen's eyes when they stood on the podium with the national anthem ringing in their ears and the national flag fluttering before their eyes, it was tears of humiliation and distress all the way.

Narrates Namrata, ``We were thrilled to have the gold medal around our necks which had brought pride to India, but India cared two hoots for us after that. No arrangements were made for us to go back home. I called my parents in Pune and told them I was coming by the Jammu Tavi Jhelum Express in an unreserved compartment and that they should look out for me at the Pune station.''

When she got on to the train at Delhi, she could not find seat in the unreserved compartment. A concerned middle-aged man took pity on Namrata who still had the medal round her neck and asked her whether she had brought honour to the country. When she nodded, he sacrificed his seat. That's how she got a place to sit, while travelling thousands of miles down to Pune. Rues Namrata,``At the Pune station, there were just four or five of my family members. Otherwise, not even a dog was around to know that two medallists of the country had arrived in their hometown. And of course, no congratulatory messages from the prime minister, chief minister or even for that matter the mayor of Pune!''

Her arrival in Pune was followed by ``chota mota clubs in Pune felicitating her. It was an indescript aftermath, after winning the gold medal. It really hurt at that point of time.''

After a couple of months, in December 1982 that is, Namrata received a letter from the sports ministry inviting her to participate in the Republic Day parade of January 26, 1983. Says Namrata, ``All the medal winners marched along but that's it, we were not even honoured''.

More agony followed. The Government of Maharshtra, says Namrata, announced a prize of one lakh rupees for every gold medalist of the Asian Games. ``But,''rues Namrata, ``when I approached the Directorate of Sports in Pune, the official told me that since there are too many medalists from the State, it was not possible to give the one lakh rupees. Instead they asked me to settle for Rs.25,000. When I tried to argue, they said that `if you want to take it, it is fine, otherwise you can forget about it.' I had no choice but to accept the Rs.25,000 which came to me after one year''.

Banking on her good performance which she put up for the country, Namrata's chances for a government job seemed bright but nothing came by. She reveals, "I applied to various private firms in Pune but they firmly told me that if they take me in, it will set a precedence and many more hockey players would knock on their doors. They said they were not interested in hockey and preferred individual sportsmen instead''.

Namrata says distressfully that ``at the end of the day you feel frustrated that all your dedication and sportsmanship has not been recognised by your country. I have spent my prime years, sweating it out to bring glory to the nation but what is the use. Sportspersons other than cricketers are treated like dirt in this country and then the officials expect us to perform well. There's nothing they do to increase our self-esteem and confidence. We have to even fight for our T-shirts and skirts although I must admit that the Asian Games in Delhi was an exception when a Japanese firm had sponsored our outfits. Otherwise, I don't recall a single instance when I interacted with officials and politicians and felt happy or felt my spirits boosted. It was always begging and pleading for your own rights''.

Even for the India Camp where probables came for national selections, ``it is my parents who sponsored my trips. They paid for everything - for my travel to the camp, whichever part of India it may have been and also for my stay. Thank God we were well off, we could afford it, otherwise the concerned officials and politicians are least interested in looking after these minute details which enhance the confidence of a young sportsperson''.