Young Basketball Star Hardik Rathi Dies After Rusted Pole Collapses During Practice in Lakhanmajra, Rohtak

This morning, Lakhanmajra Village, Rhotak, shocked the sports world as both laughter and sweat from endless hours of practice turned into mourning at the same venue where these emotions echoed daily. Hardik Rathi (16), a rising star in Indian basketball practices, was killed during practice. The news has devastated his family, the village, and many sports fans.

How did the accident happen with Hardik Rathi?

Around 10 AM Tuesday morning, while practice was being conducted at the Lakhanmajra Basketball Stadium under Coach Mohit Rathi's supervision, Hardik Rathi was taking his normal breaks to work on his net shots.

Hardik was practicing for a dunk when his finger slipped between the netting, and he got entangled; just then a dilapidated, rotting, aged pole that had been used for many years blew up from the rot on the bottom and crashed directly to the ground, striking Hardik directly on the chest.

Immediately following the incident, fellow players and coaches rushed to assist Hardik, freeing the pole from his chest so they could carry him to a local clinic. Unfortunately, Hardik had died before reaching the emergency room. Ultimately, the basketball court where Hardik had fostered dreams of success had become the last site of those dreams.

A shining star, Hardik Rathifaded too soon

Hardik Rathi was a talented athlete who had represented India in three national tournaments and one under-19 tournament; he was recently selected for the National Basketball Academy in Indore, which is an incredible accomplishment for any young aspiring athlete. 

He also played with the Haryana U-17 Basketball team, which had won third place at the national level; both his coach and his teammate feel that Hardik has a bright future with the National Team. However, there was no way of knowing that a broken-down basketball pole would destroy any potential.

Systemic negligence took the life of a promising youngster.

Residents of the village and passionate fans of the sport are expressing that the deadly accident could have been prevented had the stadium's maintenance and improvements been performed as previously promised. It is alleged that the stadium was built approximately 18 years ago with the MP quota, at the same time the basketball pole was installed.

Within the last couple of months, the MP quota approved Rs. 20 lakhs towards the renovation of the facility and to enhance the existing amenities, however the grievous accident took place just prior to any of these developments taking place. Now there is speculation regarding whether or not Hardik would be alive today had the repairs been completed within the prescribed timeline.

The moment of death of Hardik Rathi is captured on CCTV

CCTV cameras installed in the stadium captured the whole accident scene. Hardik Rathi can be seen on the video, jumping, when the pole breaks and falls onto him.

It looks as though time freezes for a brief moment for the whole globe; then, players start running towards him, but it is already too late. Due to this, the subsequent circulation of this video throughout the country has led to widespread anger and grief.

Hardik Rathi was the pride of the village

Lakhanmajra has built its legacy around basketball. With 16 players competing internationally, along with over 50 national-level players, this little village has put out more than its share of basketball talent, including Hardik.

For the villagers, He was more than just a good basketball player; he represented the hopes and dreams of many. Now the village has been devastated by this incident. Every household echoes the sentiment, “If the system had paid attention, this would never have happened.”

A similar tragic accident occurred in Bahadurgarh

Tragically, Hardik’s story is not the only one of its kind. Just a few days prior, a 15-year-old boy named Aman died when a rotting pole fell at the Shaheed Brigadier Hoshiar Singh Stadium in Bahadurgarh.

The poor state of the stadiums continues to be a serious risk to the lives of our future athletes and should raise concern.

Wave of mourning in the sports world

The tragic loss of Hardik has left the entire sports community heartbroken. According to the President of the Basketball Federation of Haryana, Ajay Sheoran, this is an enormous loss to our community, and he has ordered all stadiums across the state to be inspected immediately.

A question that still lives in mind!

Hardik is gone now, but he has left behind one question "What does it take for our system to wake up after the death of another promising player?"

This tragedy has been an attack on the conscience of everyone associated with sports, and it should be a wake-up call to the importance of doing everything possible to prevent these type of incidents from happening again.

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