Dear Local Guides fellows, today I am going to share a story of a promising, Inspirational and accessibility hero from Bangladesh. Yes, I am talking about the man named Mohammad Mohasin. He was born at 6th October 1987 in a village named Morkun East Para under Gazipur district in a poor family. He is the first son of his parents who were quite happy with him till he was attacked by polio at the age of six month.
Due to the wrong treatment of polio disease, he has lost his sensitivity of legs and certainly became a person with disability in the beginning of his life. Due to social stigma about disability his life became so complicated that he had to stop his education and was confined in house. His wish to go to the field and play with the boys of his age was universal appeal. Social discrimination failed to tame his spirit so he started went to field by rolling his feet with very difficult for playing with the children’s as boys of his age did not want to take him in game.
Mohasin’s love affair with cricket started at the age of 12 when he started playing with his classmates. The sight of a teenager in a wheelchair batting with gusto seemed a fascinating sight for local people in his village and they would especially come to watch him bat. As he grew older, he finished his school and set up a telecom shop to support his family. But Mohasin could not get cricket out of his mind as it gives him a social value and sense of identity as a part of the society which make him promising for his community. To keep his memory alive, he started posting his Cricket playing pictures on Facebook from his telecom shop computer. One day an interested person from India named Mr. Haroonur Rashid started asking him about disability cricket in Bangladesh.
Since Mohasin does not understand Hindi language he started seeking help from a friend named Polash about communication issues and replied back to Mr. Haroon that he is interested to play cricket and make a team in Bangladesh.
This gave him an opportunity to be engaged with cricket again so he started seeking the persons with disability and willing to play cricket on Facebook. With difficulty, he finally managed to find some players with the help of Centre for the Rehabilitation of the Paralyzed (CRP) and some well-wishers of his. He invited Mr. Haroon to bring his team to Bangladesh and play the first physically challenged India vs Bangladesh T20 Cricket series where Bangladesh lost the series. After the event, time passes by but his life remains unchanged and becomes confined to that boring schedule of shop to home where his thirst for cricket was killing him. So he decided to establish a Cricket team and started professional cricket for physically challenged people though he is the only wheelchair user disabled person in the team. Thus, he formed the first ever disabled cricket team of the country named BANGLADESH CRICKET ASSOCIATION FOR THE PHYSICALLY CHALLENGED (BCAPC).
After that he went to join Taj Mahal Trophy championship tournament at Agra, India in 2014 by selling his telecom shop which was his only source of income of his life. The most challenging the decision he took in his life did not make him disappointed as his team performed well and they won the series. Winning the Taj Mahal Trophy was the turning point of his life as it brought glory for the country and receiving a reception from Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was the most inspiring event of his life.
Suddenly a rule was implemented internationally in physically challenged cricket that for the sake of speed of the game wheelchair user disabled were excluded in physically challenged cricket teams and his hope of playing professional cricket became darkened. So, he became frustrated with playing cricket day by day and started consulting with his old friend. Soon they realized that there is a marginalized invisible group living in the society but in reality they are extant named wheelchair User disabled persons.
Then he thought to himself - “Why not start a wheelchair cricket team?” Ever since the idea struck, Mohasin and Polash have left no stone unturned to make it work, especially since wheelchair cricket Players were excluded from physically challenged cricket teams. The journey, of course, was paved with problems as most of the organizations he approached refused support. But the cricket-crazy Mohasin stuck to his guns and eventually got support from Harunur Rashid again. Along with his friend, they navigated several roadblocks that crop up when sports and a disability are involved –from financial support to mindset problems.
Consequently, Mohasin Managed to establish Wheelchair Cricket Welfare Association Bangladesh (WCWAB) in 2016 with the help of Imago sports management ltd. Along with polash and Noor Nahian one of his playmates by organizing a national tournament in Dhaka.
Next year, Wheelchair Cricket Welfare Association Bangladesh achieved the prestigious JOY BANGLA YOUTH AWARD 2017 of its outstanding contribution for society and innovative initiative - out of 1300 participants throughout the country.
I had a long discussion with him regarding Google Maps accessibility initiative. After talking with him I am really inspired. His story will inspire lots of local guides as well. If you know any accessibility champion, please share his/ her story with us.
