BHOPAL: For the past five years, Indian hockey goalkeeper Khushboo Khan has been going around the world, representing the country, and coming home to her shanty in Bhopal. In all these years, officials’ promises of helping the family get a pucca house have never turned into reality.
On Thursday, Khushboo was again selected for the Indian junior hockey team in Ireland. The 20-year-old – who hones her goalkeeping skills by pitting herself against male players in Bhopal – has been representing the Indian women’s hockey team since 2017. She has stood guardian for the Indian side in Belgium, Argentina, Australia, Chile, South Africa, Belarus and Ireland. She has been to Australia and Ireland twice and represented India in the junior world cup last year.
However, at home, her family’s struggle is the same as it was. Khushboo has four siblings and her father Shabbir Khan drives an auto to feed the family.
“It is good to see that my daughter is doing great at the international level. While representing the country, she travels by airplane and stays in big hotels, but life is different when she comes back home. She has to stay in this old dilapidated shanty,” said 52-year-old Khan.