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By:

Kiran D. Tare

21 August 2024 at 4:53:13 pm

From Fighter Jets to Faith

Air Marshal (retd.) Jeetendra Mishra brings discipline, integrity and command experience to the Ram Mandir Trust as it seeks to rebuild faith shaken by the donation scandal. The biggest challenge facing Air Marshal (retd.) Jeetendra Mishra, who was recently appointed first chief executive officer of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra in Ayodhya, can be articulated in a single word. It is not security or the vast machinery that keeps the Ram Mandir functioning. It is trust. Mishra takes...

From Fighter Jets to Faith

Air Marshal (retd.) Jeetendra Mishra brings discipline, integrity and command experience to the Ram Mandir Trust as it seeks to rebuild faith shaken by the donation scandal. The biggest challenge facing Air Marshal (retd.) Jeetendra Mishra, who was recently appointed first chief executive officer of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra in Ayodhya, can be articulated in a single word. It is not security or the vast machinery that keeps the Ram Mandir functioning. It is trust. Mishra takes over the management of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust takes charge at an awkward moment for an institution that derives much of its moral authority from the faith of millions of devotees. Till date, allegations of theft and irregularities involving temple donations have resulted in criminal investigations, eight arrests, changes in the Trust’s composition and the resignation of its general secretary, Champat Rai. The scandal has raised uncomfortable questions about whether offerings made in faith are being handled with the seriousness that faith demands. Mishra’s appointment suggests that the Trust understands the scale of that challenge. Known for his key role in Operation Sindoor, his CV is almost an advertisement for disciplined institutional management. It certainly sends out a reassuring message at a time when the scam-battered Trust is in danger of losing faith among devotees. A fighter combat leader, experimental test pilot and veteran commander, Mishra retired in April this year as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Western Air Command. He has held a succession of demanding operational and organisational appointments, including Deputy Chief of Integrated Defence Staff (Operations), commander of a fighter squadron, Chief Test Pilot at the Aircraft and Systems Testing Establishment and commander of two frontline air bases. These are qualities that are needed to steer the Ram Mandir Temple Trust out of its present quagmire. Notable in Mishra’s military record is that the Western Air Command was at the centre of Operation Sindoor, India’s robust and swift response to Pakistan and the terror bases lodged in that country. He was among its top planners and received a medal for distinguished service of exceptional order for his role. His other honours include the Sarvottam Yudh Seva Medal, Ati Vishisht Seva Medal and Vishisht Seva Medal. No one perhaps is more suitable to hand the Trust’s current crisis as he. Asked about his strategy as CEO, Mishra, in interviews, has stressed that it would have to be developed under the guidance of the Trust and with his team. By this, Mishra appears to suggest that the CEO is being brought in not simply to impose military-style discipline on a religious institution but to make an existing institution work better. After all, the donation controversy cannot be repaired merely through arrests or administrative reshuffling. Those actions may establish accountability for alleged wrongdoing. They do not automatically restore confidence among devotees. A devotee dropping money into a donation box does so with an expectation that the offering will be handled honestly, efficiently and transparently. Once that assumption is disturbed, even an impeccably managed ledger cannot immediately restore what has been lost. When asked how his Air Force background would help, Mishra unassumingly pointed not to some special military formula but to qualities such as discipline, hard work and integrity. That selection process to the top job itself was unusually competitive. The Trust received 5,585 applications for the CEO’s post. A search panel headed by retired judge Pramod Kohli, with retired Lieutenant General Vishnukant Chaturvedi and former scientist Suresh Haware, assessed candidates through a 600-mark framework before interviewing 16 finalists in Ayodhya on August 11 and 12. Mishra has emerged from that field at a moment when the Trust needed more than another administrator. It needs someone capable of signalling that the institution takes stewardship seriously.
“Lord Ram does not require my service,” Mishra has said. “It’s the nation and the people who require my service.” This attitude may be his greatest asset. The Ram Mandir is not short of devotees. What its management now needs is to convince those devotees that their faith is being matched by institutional integrity. Mishra has spent a career dealing with systems in which mistakes can carry enormous consequences. His real mission in his new assignment is to make devotees confident that when they give donations, their faith is not being misplaced.

A beacon of hope for rural athletes

Updated: Oct 22, 2024

How Akash Shinde transformed from a shy village boy to a prominent kabaddi player

beacon of hope

Mumbai: In the heart of Nashik's Adgaon village, a young boy Akash Shinde dared to dream big. Little did he know that his journey from playing in the muddy grounds of his town to becoming a PKL winner would inspire a generation of aspiring athletes.


“Initially, when I used to play, I would come home with bruises because Kabaddi was played in the mud,” Akash recalls as he enters his fourth season with the Puneri Paltan. And despite his family's initial concerns, his passion for kabaddi burned bright, fuelled by the unwavering support of his early mentors Sagar Malwade and Vinod Labde.


His path to success was far from smooth. He faced numerous setbacks, failing to make the cut in his first attempts at various levels. “I fell short in my first attempts at all levels. I went for my senior camp for Maharashtra and fell short there too!”


But instead of letting these failures discourage him, Akash used them as stepping stones. “These setbacks kept me determined, and I knew I needed to try harder and with renewed energy to show the world what I could do and achieve.”


His breakthrough came in 2019 at a seniors’ trial in Nashik. This performance opened doors, leading him to play in the Junior Nationals and eventually catching the eye of Yuva Paltan, which is the Puneri Paltan’s academy.


The turning point in Akash’s career came when he represented his college in Beed, earning his first chance to play for Maharashtra. Under the guidance of Anil Jagdale and Kailas Jagdale, his skills flourished. His journey accelerated as he moved from Mahindra & Mahindra to Yuva Paltan, where mentors like Sangram and Ashok helped refine his game.


Akash’s PKL debut with Puneri Paltan in Season 8 was a moment of immense pride, not just for him but for his entire village. “No player from the Nashik region had made it to PKL or even the Maharashtra team, so it was a shock, a pleasant one, for everyone. The entire Nashik district was very happy. It felt really good,” he reminisces.


But it was in Season 9 that he truly announced his arrival, becoming a formidable force on the mat. In the 22 matches that Akash played on the way to his first PKL final, he scored 139 raid points, averaging 6.32 raid point per match.


His performances caught the eye of the national selectors, earning him a spot on the Indian team for the Asian Games. “I received my Team India kit on the 27th of October. I still remember it,” he says.


The crowning glory came in PKL Season 10 when Akash, along with his Puneri Paltan teammates, lifted the coveted trophy. Albeit playing a diminished role, he managed an impressive 56 raid points in the 13 matches he played. “There was only one target then... we had made up our minds that we had to win the title this season, whatever it took,” he shared, reflecting on the team’s collective determination. Now, Akash stands as a beacon of hope for young athletes from rural India. His message to them is clear: “Keep believing in yourselves and your dedication and efforts.” He emphasizes the importance of loyalty, urging young players to stay true to the clubs that nurture them.


As he prepares for PKL Season 11, his journey from the muddy grounds of Adgaon to the bright lights of Pro Kabaddi serves as a testament to the power of dreams, determination, and unwavering support.

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