Starting 10 years ago, this was the seventh year a group of Bendigo people had travelled to India to add their experience to the development of football in the country.

It was the first time the championships had been held since COVID.

The group travelled to the Indian 'Golden Triangle' to experience the marvels of the Taj Mahal, Victoria Museum, Mother Theresa's mission/orphanage, the Red Fort, Agra Fort, Victoria Memorial Kolkata, Eden Gardens cricket ground and the New Delhi Sikh temple where they feed up to 30,000 people each day and is open to anyone from any cultural/religious background.

Landing in New Delhi, the group travelled by air, bus, train, elephant, ferry, rickshaw and foot to Kolkata, Jaipur, Agra, Balasore and Baripada, among many other cities and towns.

It is almost unbelievable to see that cows, sacred in Hindi religion, freely wander highways and roads, which are also shared by trucks, buses, cars, bikes, rickshaws, people and dogs. It is incredible to see how it all works.

India has the world's biggest population (1.4 billion), and their population is made up of a younger population than China, with the second biggest population.

India is the world's biggest democracy. Counting the votes in the Indian election this year will have someone's head spinning.

Over the weekend of January 19, 20 and 21, Australian rules football clinics were held for 10 provinces (states).

Originally scheduled to be played on a grass oval, the games were transferred to an oval, initially half grass and half dirt, due to a last minute cancellation from the authorities.

After Friday afternoon's clinic, 16 games were played on Saturday and 12 on Sunday.

Bendigo volunteers filled the positions of goal, boundary and field umpires, timekeepers, and selectors of both the best and fairest players in the competition and the shortlisted pool of 30 players who stand a chance to represent India at the AFL Asia Cup later this year.

The Jharkhand Crows defeated the West Bengal Tigers in the senior grand final, while the Crows also won the junior division grand final by defeating the Maharashtra Giants.

Over 100 kilograms of apparel, including jumpers, T-shirts, trophies and footballs, were taken by our team to give away to the fanatical Indian players.

Cricket is the most popular game played in India, but some of those who play football travel by train for over 40 hours to attend the championships.

Footballs (ironically made in India) are the tools of trade for these fanatical players, yet it is a constant struggle for AFL India to raise funds for procuring footballs and other equipment for the 11 states that play Aussie Rules in India at the moment.

The volunteer national body (AFL India) tries to raise funds throughout the year to support all activities of the sport across the country, including an all-expenses paid trip to the national championships for over 250 players and officials.

The carnival was an eye-opening event where both winning teams locked arms and celebrated in the middle of the ground.

Training tips at the clinic had to be demonstrated, as most players didn't speak English.

Tall Australians in their shorts and T-shirts (it was winter but the temperature was low 20s and most Indians had jumpers on) who spoke English were an oddity, and 'selfies' were non-stop.

It was a most rewarding and enlightening trip to tour India and assist where we could, conducting a successful national football championship and growing the game.

For anyone interested for January 2025 or potential opportunities in late-December 2024, or to donate apparel/footballs, please contact Sudip Chakraborty from AFL India at - sudip_13@live.com.

It is of great credit to Bendigo that almost everyone over the last 10 years who has travelled to India has come from the region, including this year Ian Sladden (team leader), Abe Sladden, Josh Dowsing, Bevan Madden, Peter McRae, Mick Kelly, Phil Potter, Neil Mitting, Paul, Dave, Adam and Ian Symons.