Able-bodied celebrities and Sr. Bureaucrats like Ms Lakshmi Manchu, Ms Shilpa Reddy, Ms Lavanya Tripathi, Ms Sanjana Galrani; Shri Jayesh Ranjan, Principal Secretary – IT; Smt Abhilasha Bisht, ADG, TSSP; Shri Sajjanar, IPS, CP, Cyberabad; Shri Ram Krishnan, Secretary, HMDA; Shri Dinakar Babu, IAS, MD, Sports Authority of Telangana; Shri Tarun Joshi, IPS, Jt. CP, and others, showcased their sporting skills by vying for honours against eminent para-athletes, Raj Aryardhan, Wheelchair Common Wealth Table Tennis medalist & World number 2; Hopping Star, Girish Sharma, a one legged badminton star; Anand, past world number 1 para badminton player; Gurlal Singh, 1st Indian to win bronze in Asian Games Cycling, Monisha – Badminton – speech and hearing difficulty; Arshad for hand cycling and archery, which even the able bodied sportsmen couldn’t replicate; Bala, India’s number 1 wheelchair lawn tennis player and others at the unique Sporting Event – Celebrities vs Para-athletes, an initiative of Aditya Mehta Foundation (AMF), on Friday at Central Recreation Garden (CRG), Mindspace.
Year after year World Disability Day evokes sympathy from the public at large for the disabled and in no time the purpose of celebrating the day fades away. Aditya Mehta Foundation would like to change this perception and the typical attitude of the society towards the disabled. It is celebrating the occasion such a way that the disabled gain dignity and admiration from the society. The road show hosted by AMF showcased para-athletes as the stars, says Aditya Mehta, Founder of the Aditya Mehta Foundation.
Ms Lakshmi Manchu, in an accident Aditya lost his limb, instead of brooding over it, he not only worked hard and excelled in the field he choose but also went ahead to support many others like him from coming out of that gloomy situation. It is only appropriate we do our bit to give life to these people. Aditya’s grit made him to convert a disability into an ability and not he alone but he made others like him too also lead a life filled with pride. Lets also register for the Solidarity Run and Ride on 1st December and support the cause.
Shri Sajjanar, wanted people to participate in big numbers at the Solidarity Run and Ride on 1st December and make it a grand success.
The details of some of the para-athletes who participated in the event are:
- S. Balachandar – Gold Medalist from 2006 to 2019, National Level, Doubles category in Wheelchair Tennis sport-Currently, Silver medalist, National level in Singles category, Silver medals, doubles category in international Open events such as Malaysian Open, Srilankan Open, Thailand Open.
- Gurlal Singh– 1st Indian to win bronze in Asian Games in para-cycling 2017 and 2019(no able bodied indian has also won). He is from BSF and lost his limb in an ID blast;
- B. Anand Kumar, Para Badminton- former World #1, World Champion 2015 & ASIAN GAMES Bronze Medalist 2018
- Raj Airvardhan – International para Table Tennis Player ,World Ranking no 31,Asia Ranking no 13 Indian Ranking no 1 (14 times national Para TT Gold medalist, Coach : ITTF- PTT Level 1, Commonwealth Games 2010, ITTF PTT World Championship 2014 Beijing.
- Girish kumar Sharma – ParaBadminton-former World # 2, 2008 Asian champion Gold medallist, 2018 Dubai Bronze medalist, World number 16 in 2018
- Sake Babu – past CISF, District National champion in Para-Athletics
- Indian Para- cycling Team: Gurlal Singh – Asian Bronze Medalist and Birbhadra and Ajay Kumar from CRPF and Kaigoulal.
- Rahul Kuthe – Para- Badminton from CRPF
- Sunil Kumar – Para- Badminton from CRPF
- Monisha– Badminton – Speech and hearing difficulty
- Arshadfor hand Cycling and Archery
AMF is hosting a Solidarity Run and Ride on 1st December, 2019, the road show hosted today is a prelude to the Run, to generate support and encouragement from the community for para sports and Para Athletes. The celebrities and dignitaries who attended the Road show today, endorsed their support for the same. AMF looks forward to public registering in large numbers for the run, as a token of support to the cause of the disabled.
The World Disability Day falls on 3rd December, however AMF and CRPF have chosen 1st December, a Sunday for the Solidarity run and ride. The Run is an opportunity to announce to the world that disabled can achieve as much or even more than the able-bodied. Road accidents are a major cause for disability off-late, AMF intends to sensitise the public on avoidable road accidents and emphasise on safe driving, through the run. It’s also an occasion to express our gratitude to the police, for the critical role they play in preventing such accidents and disability.
The Solidarity run and ride, is being supported by CRPF, Hyderabad Police, Cyberabad Police, Sports Authority of Telangana, Rachakonda Police and National Police Academy, Mindspace Raheja, Bharathi Cements, Flash, Aurobindo Pharma, B.N Rathi and Sons, HMDA, Continental Hospitals, Kotak Mahindra, SCSC, Macromedia, Might Events, Vajra Events, Aparna, CISF and Hyderabad Runners.