Pioneer hockey coach Pratima Barwa, who produced players like Salima Tete & Sangeeta Kumari, no more

Khunti, known for its rich tribal identity, has long been a cradle of Indian hockey. It was from this very region that Jaipal Singh Munda emerged to become the captain of the Indian hockey team that won gold at the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics. Nearly a century later, Barwa carried forward that legacy, not with a stick in hand, but with an unwavering commitment to nurture young girls in the sport. Her coaching, often in remote fields with bare minimum facilities, produced several Adivasi hockey stars.

“She dedicated her entire life to hockey,” said Sanjeeta Barwa, her younger sister. “She started playing in Class 5 after being selected for Gumla’s training programme. Later, she trained at the Bariatu Hockey Centre and then joined the Punjab Hockey Academy before returning to Jharkhand.”

Barwa played for Jharkhand for nearly two decades, though a leg injury put paid to her chances of making it to the national team. After her playing career, she became a full-time coach under the Jharkhand government’s Department of Tourism, Sports and Youth Affairs.

Barwa was initially posted in Simdega, one of Jharkhand’s hockey hubs, where she served for over a decade before being transferred to Khunti. Until her illness, she was coaching at the School of Excellence (SS+2) in Khunti, a residential centre nurturing young tribal talent.

“She produced many state, national-level and international players. She worked with the likes of Salima Tete, who is now the captain of the Indian hockey team, Sangita Kumari and Beauty Dungdung,” Sanjeeta said.

Born into a hockey-loving adivasi family, Barwa drew inspiration from her father Late Gopal Barwa, a CRPF jawan and local player, and her uncles who played in village tournaments. She grew up watching matches dubbed the “Khassi Cup” and “Murga Cup,” where goats and chickens were prizes.

Tough childhood

Her sister remembers her struggles with clarity. “She came up the hard way — no money, limited resources — but she never gave up. Even when she had seizures in 2022, she recovered and guided the Jharkhand team at the Rourkela nationals in 2023.”

“Even while battling illness, she remained hopeful about returning to the field,” said her tearful sister. “She told me, ‘I want to get better and go back to training my girls.’”

Former India captain Asunta Lakra, currently a national selector, recalled her deep bond with Barwa, describing her as a quiet force in Jharkhand’s grassroots sports movement.

“I first met Pratima didi at the Sports Authority of India (SAI) centre in Bariatu, Ranchi, in the late 1990s. She was our senior — strict but gentle, a natural leader who kept the team disciplined without ever raising her voice,” Asunta told The Indian Express.

“She would say, ‘I want to be a turning point in at least one girl’s life.’ No one talks about it, but every single international player coming from Simdega or even Jharkhand today — they were once under her care,” Lakra claimed.

“She never sought the limelight and didn’t get the recognition she truly deserved — not from the system, not even from us sometimes.”

Barwa’s husband, Sukra Lohra, is a CRPF jawan currently posted in Raigarh, Chhattisgarh. They married in 2018 and have a one-and-a-half-year-old son. He remembers how passionate his wife was about hockey, often choosing to be on the ground over holidays at home.

“She would say, ‘I couldn’t play much, but I want to make sure the children I coach get every opportunity,’” he recalls.

Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren called Barwa’s passing an irreparable loss for the state and the Indian hockey fraternity.

“The untimely demise of hockey coach Pratima Barwa ji, who gave many talented international hockey players to Jharkhand and the country, is extremely saddening,” he wrote on social media. He called her “an ideal for the hardworking daughters of Jharkhand.”