The Garo basketball league: Meghalaya’s other sporting obsession

Ask a Garo Hills village what it builds first — a church, a school or a basketball court — and the honest answer is often the court.

The region’s village basketball league, played through the dry months, fields teams from hundreds of villages and draws crowds that rival festivals.

The state has produced national-level players from these dirt courts, and the league’s finals are now televised locally.