Guwahati, Nov. 28: Assam?s Z. Rangkhal has found a place for himself in the national shooting arena and the history of the sport in the state. The policeman, who took up the sport just for a lark, has become the first shooter from Assam to qualify for the national shooting championship, to be held in Hyderabad from December 1 to 12.

Distant horizons beckon him, for if the Assam Police official manages to perform up to the mark at the nationals, he stands a fair chance of getting a call for the trials to stitch the Indian shooting team for the Melbourne Commonwealth Games.

According to the secretary of the Assam Rifle and Shooting Association, Pranjal Bora, Rangkhal should make it to the trials. The basic criterion to qualify is to accumulate 90 points. The trials will be held in Hyderabad immediately after the nationals.

Thanks to the initiative of a section of Assam Police officials, the state made a late but impressive debut in the national shooting arena when Rangkhal and seven other shooters recently represented Assam in the 15th GV Mavlankar all-India shooting competition and came out with flying colours. The team comprised of Bhaba Kalita, H. Konwar, Bipul Gohain, Rajen Singh, Bhaskar Hazarika, Ramesh Thapa, Chinmoy Gharphalia and Rangkhal. All eight scored over 75 per cent in various pistol events.

Incidentally, this was the first time that a team from Assam took part in any shooting competition.

?We had gone into the competition with the most amateurish attitude and even without any arms to compete with. As far as training is concerned, we had a short stint in Manipur. That was at least six months ago because we have neither the infrastructure nor arms. In fact, the credit for the good show should go to our shooters? talent,? said Bora.

Shooter Rajen Singh echoed him. The shooter added that the Assam team had to compete with borrowed arms, some of which were outdated and not in proper working condition. ?If we had had proper practice and the right equipment, we could have won medals on debut.?

Though the state government?s Directorate of Sports purchased practice equipment for almost every discipline of the forthcoming 33rd National Games, the gear for the shooting events found no mention on its shopping list.

The Assam Police Sports Control Board, too, was supposed to purchase some pistols and rifles. But even that was delayed ?due to certain departmental constraints?.

The association?s working president HC Nath, also a senior Assam Police official, has appealed to the sports authorities concerned to help the association groom a professional squad.