Milkha Singh Biography

 

Milkha Singh- Biography

Often our elders, teachers say, be the Alexander of fate.

Friends, but who is fate’s Alexander? One who has won his destiny. Like our "Flying Sikh Milkha Singh" who is not with us today, he believed that life is not made by the lines of hands, in that we too have a great part in making life. He was determined to do something in life, facing the rain of difficulties.  

I would like to dedicate a tribute to India's most popular, respected, and unmatched sprinter Milkha Singh ji by highlighting some aspects, incidents in his life.

Before becoming a great runner, Milkha Singh's life was full of thorns. He was born on 20 November 1929 in a Sikh Rathore family in Govindpura, Muzaffargarh, Pakistan. His parents had fifteen children, some of whom died at a very young age. In the fire of Partition, seven siblings including his parents were murdered and burnt in front of his eyes. He says, that because of this painful scene, for the first time in life we ​​cried bitterly. The grief of losing loved ones kept on haunting him throughout his life.

"Bhaag Milkha Bhaag" These were the words that India's great sprinter Milkha Singh was said by his father at the last minute, before his head was beheaded. Weeping and crying, Milkha earned a big name by assimilating these words. His parents were poor. Lived in a two-room house. In which one room was for animals, in the other the whole family lived. Before his death, his father had said Bhaag Milkha Bhaag and asked him to flee to Multan where his elder brother Makhan Singh was. He says that to go to Multan, catch a train from Kot Addu to Multan, which was soaked in blood. The rioters chased them, he hid under the seat in the ladies compartment and requested the women not to tell.

In the chaos of Partition, he eventually came to India from Pakistan by train as a refugee. At that time there was cholera in Delhi. Nearly three weeks were spent on the railway train with thousands of refugees. At this time, a ray of hope flashed when the name of his elder sister Ishar was announced. After this the brothers and sisters went towards the refugee camp of the old fort. Only four members of his family survived, elder brother Makhan Singh, sister-in-law, elder sister and Milkha Singh. After living in the refugee camp, they started living in a resettled settlement in Shahdara area of ​​Delhi. It was a day full of great struggles. Polished the shoes, cleaned the utensils at the Dhabas. In an attempt to get life back on track, he used to do the work of cleaning a shop. For which he used to get a salary of 10 rupees a month. At the same time, he also enrolled in the 9th standard, but the struggle of life came in the way of studies. Milkha Singh was once arrested just because he was traveling without a railway ticket. For bail, the sister had to sell her jewellery.

After such a terrible childhood, he decided to do something in his life. At the behest of his brother Makhan Singh, he decided to join the army and joined the army in 1952. During this, a race was about to take place, in which he took part. Hone his skills and established himself in 200 mt and 400 mt and has achieved success in many competitions and made his mark as a sprinter.

Friends, the skill of running in Milkha Singh did not come suddenly. Rather, he was running since childhood, that too on the scorching sand. And this passion and experience came in handy later. It starts from Kot Addu village. When he studied in the fifth standard, his school was 10 km from home. Every day he used to run from school to school barefoot and from home to school with friends, that too in the months of May-June on the scorching sand. Milkha ji says that it helped him to increase stamina at an early age. He competed in 80 international races, winning 77. He is the first Indian to win a gold medal for India in the Commonwealth Games. For his incomparable contribution The Government of India decorated him with the Padma Shri, India's fourth highest award in 1959. And thus, he became the successful runner of India. Sometime for 400 mt he also holed a world record runner.

His achievements: - Gold medal in 1958 Asian Games in 200m and 400m. Gold medal in 1958 Japan Commonwealth game. 1962 Gold Medal in Asian Banana 400 & 400x4 Relay. Gold Medal in 200 and 400 in 1958 Cuttack National Game. 400 mt Silver in 1964 Calcutta National Game.

In 1960, Milkha Singh participated in the International Athletes Meet held in Pakistan where he was given a grand welcome. From Baga Border he was taken to the hotel in a jeep adorned with flowers, the voices of standing on both sides of the road echoed "Milkha Singh, Milkha Singh" where he was up against the famous Flying Bird runner of Pakistan and Asia "Abdul Khaliq", whom he had overtaken. General Ayub Khan sahib gave him a medal and said Milkha Singh ji you did not run you flew, and he called him as "Flying Sikh" and since then the whole world knows him as "Flying Sikh". Friends, it is a matter of pride.

Milkha Singh ji narrates a story of "1958 Asia Games" as he says I cannot express in words the excitement of the moment when the Emperor of Japan wore a gold medal around my neck. In 200 mt race I had a tough competition with Pakistan's Abdul Khaliq "Flying Bird of Asia". Khalid was also the winner of 100 mt. The race started. Both of us were stepping at the same time. But 3 meters before the finishing tape, my leg muscle was pulled, and I stumbled and fell. By photo finish I was declared the winner because I fell to the finishing line. Also, I was declared the best athlete in Asia. The emperor had said that if you keep running, you can get the best place in the world.

On the night of 18th June, when Milkha Singh Ji said goodbye to the world, a message came from Mohammad Ejaz, son of Pakistan's legendary athlete Abdul Khaliq, that Milkha Singh Sir's departure is a big loss for both India and Pakistan. He further says, there were many similarities between his father and Milkha Sir. Milkha Singh ji was born in Govindpura before partition. Lost parents and family in Partition and then came to India as a refugee. Ejaz says that his father Abdul Khaliq also saw great poverty. My father also rose from poverty to become a great athlete with his hard work. Like Milkha Sir, he also joined the army and training there and his passion for running made him the fastest man in Asia during 1956-1960.

Led India in 1956 Melbourne Olympics, 1960 Rome Olympics, 1964 Tokyo Olympics. When the Rome Olympic medal was lost, for the second time, he wept bitterly. And this was with him for the rest of his life. His great desire was to see the gold medal on the neck of an Indian player in the Olympics. Which remained incomplete.

Milkha Singh was very much loved by his family, especially his wife Nirmal ji. With whom she met in Colombo in 1955, who was the captain of Indian women's volleyball. In 1962, both tied the knot. She also served in the Indian Army. Nirmal Milkha Singh was also the Director of Women's Sports in the Punjab government. She was also awarded the title of Padma Shri.

Milkha Singh ji and Nirmal ji have three daughters and one son. One daughter Dr. Mona Singh is a doctor in America. Second daughter Sonia Sanwalka is the co-author of "The Race of My Life" by Milkha Singh ji as well as many best seller books to her name. Third daughter Alija Grover who lives in Chandigarh. Milkha Singh's son is India's first professional golfer. He is the first golfer from India to take part in the European Tour in 1998 and won four events. Also, Jeev Milkha Singh is the first Indian to break into the top 100 in the World Golf Rankings. After this, the Government of India honored him with the Padma Shri in 2007. Harjay Milkha Singh is the grandson of Milkha Singh and he also plays golf and has participated in many golf championships. Achieved good ranking in the tournament of 7 years category in 2017. Apart from this, Milkha Singh and Nirmal ji adopted a seven year old child of an army man named Havildar Vikram Singh, who was martyred in the battle of "Tiger Hill" in 1999.

What is the fitness secret of 91 year old Milkha Singh? So, he said that I do running, jogging every day, apart from this I play golf. He says that I definitely do 10 -15 minutes of exercise, to keep the body fit. Because if you are fit you, are a hit. He said if you are hungry for four rotis, then eat 2 roti. If blood rushes through the body, it will shed diseases. All diseases start from the stomach. And he also emphasized on this point "Speak work, stay fit" because if you speak less then you will be mentally healthy then you will be physically healthy too.

Giving a message to the youth, Milkha Singh Ji said – Today's youth is in the lap of drugs, lost in the world of mobile, come out of it, be dedicated towards sports and make your name bright. Sports are essential for mental and physical development.

Lessons from the life of Milkha Singh - Always be a positive and optimistic person. He faced every battle, every difficulty, every challenge of life, never lost but kept running along with them. Milkha Singh's Mantra of Success With discipline, hard work, passion and strong will power, no one can stop you from moving forward. This belief of his will always inspires people. Milkha Singh Ji foot step, his achievement will be written in golden letters in the history of sports world and he will always remain a source of inspiration.

The whole country bows to the superstar of the sports world of India who "did not run, used to fly".