Former Uganda International Umpire Kirpal Bahra passes away
by Dil Bahra
3 January 2023
Kirpal Singh Bahra, the former Uganda International umpire passed away in Watford, Hertfordshire in the UK on 22nd December 2022 aged 85.
He was a well known umpire in the East African area during the late 60s and mid 70s when Hockey in that region was of a very high standard and India and Pakistan visited regularly. The East African Hockey Championships (Rahim Jivraj Trophy) were held regularly involving Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi and later on from 1971 Ghana, Nigeria and UAR.
Kirpal was born in Nakuru, Kenya on 19th July 1937. His parents had emigrated from India to Kenya in 1921.
After his primary school education at Government Primary School in Nakuru, the family moved to Nairobi at the end of 1947. He studied at Technical High School in Nairobi where he played hockey for his school team.
He played for Railway Club Nairobi. He joined Shell in 1958 and played for the Shell Hockey Section in the local league.
His work took him to Uganda in 1966 and he played for Ramgarhia Sikh Sports Club Kampala until 1974.
He took up umpiring and was appointed to umpire his first international match, Zambia v Kenya on 4th August 1968 during the East African Championship in Kampala, Uganda. From then he umpired regularly at the Annual East African Championships until 1984. He was one of only two international umpires in Uganda during that period.
Although most of the Asians left Uganda in 1972 after being expelled by dictator Idi Amin, Kirpal stayed back. The Uganda National Hockey team which had competed at the Munich 1972 Olympic Games in August and September 1972 had disbanded, with nearly all the players fleeing the country. Kirpal assisted in training and forming a new team which went on to compete at the East African Championships held in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania in August 1973. He was appointed as Uganda's Assistant Team Manager for the Championships and also umpired there.
In 1974 he was posted to Zambia and he played for Sikh Union Lusaka.
He was awarded his FIH International Umpire Badge on 22nd March 1974.
He immigrated to the UK in 1985 and resided in Bushy, Hertfordshire.
Kirpal had a wide knowledge of hockey in East Africa which will be greatly missed. He visited The Hockey Museum in Woking, Surrey in the UK in 2012 where he told volunteers present that day about hockey in East Africa and Zambia in particular.