Mangalore: Young and old go swimming to beat summer heat

Naveen Menezes Gurpur
Pics: Brijesh Garodi
Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore

Mangalore, May 22: Come summer, and hundreds of children and their parents make a beeline to cool off in swimming pools around the city. One such hub is the swimming pool located at Lady Hill, Mangalore.

The 26-year-old swimming pool owned by the Mangalore City Corporation conducts swimming practice sessions around the year, but training classes for children are scheduled only during summer vacations.

Since there is only one professional swimming pool with good coaches, parents usually admit their children here. “Every year the number keeps increasing. This year, the number has touched four digits”, said Ramesh Bejai, manager of the pool. “To manage the massive crowd, we have divided the group into five batches—three in the morning (7:30 – 8:15, 8:30 – 9.15, 9:30 – 10:15) and two in the evening (3:30 – 4:15, 4:30 – 5:15). The evening batches are meant for women”, he said and also added, “We will issue certificates to those who master swimming”.

Six-year-old Thejal and Vaishnavi, both students of St Theresa’s School, Bendorewell, are two of the many children who have successfully learnt swimming. Watching his daughter swim, businessman Naresh Padil and father of Thejal says, “I learnt swimming in the pond and rivulets. But they are risky. My daughter and niece Vaishnavi are so passionate about swimming now. We were supposed to go to the temple as part of my brother’s birthday celebration but these children have told us to bring them to swimming classes and thereafter the temple,” he said pointing out how attached the children are to swimming.

Apart from the ardent interest in swimming, some considered it one of the best exercises. Some said they joined in order to grow tall while a few more added, “Swimming is the best exercise to reduce obesity”. Excluding children, there are middle aged women in the evening batches and aged men in the morning batch who swam for exercise. G Manohar, a 71-year-old, an architect is one among the elderly ones. For him, swimming is his ultimate passion. “I come twice a week and swim for half an hour”, he says.

In addition, the summer swimming practice session, which began a month ago includes some interesting tales. While there were parents who come from far off places to teach their children swimming, a few parents end up learning to swim too.

Businessman Ganesh and his wife Gowri Pai travelled all the way from Kadaba, about 80 km away from the city, in order to teach their four-year-old son Aashlesh Pai swimming. “We do not have such a swimming pool anywhere near our place. Though there are a few, they are not that good. I want my son to learn at least fifty percent of swimming and gain confidence in the water. Once this is achieved, I can get him to swim at our place”, he said expressing happiness over the good coaches available here. 

“Since it’s a long distance, we stay here in the city for four days in a week and then move home during the weekend. Apart from swimming classes, we have enrolled him in skating classes, so that our entire day is properly planned”, Ganesh Pai says.

In another case, Cherry Kennedy of Mangalore, a home maker, who brought her son Mark Dakshin to the swimming classes ended up joining the classes. “I wanted my son to learn swimming without being dependent on coaches. During the process of watching him learn swimming, even I thought of joining classes. I don’t know swimming and previously I did not know there were special classes for women in the evening. Learning about the available facility, I too have joined classes”, she says happily.

“After month-long classes, I am able to swim from one end of the pool to the other. I know people watch me; it does not make me nervous as I am a beginner. I am confident now”, she adds.

Coaches and lifeguards

As the number of children who joined the summer swimming practice sessions was more this year, the city corporation has outsourced a few coaches. In total, there are nine coaches including two women coaches. Four lifeguards and a few helpers are also present at the pool. The coaches are Sumana Kharvi, Vidya Kamath, Ramakrishna Rao, Umesh, Sitharam Shetty, Eshwar, Aaris, Rao, and Joseph Crasta. Pundalik Kharvi, Sundar Putran, Rajendra Rao, and Tukaram Kharvi are the lifeguards.