Bengaluru: For powerlifter Farman Basha, Thursday’s Ekalavya Awards ceremony at the Vidhana Soudha’s banquet hall was about more than just the money.
For the first time in the State, paralympic athletes were brought on a par with their able-bodied counterparts in terms of prize money, meaning that medallists from the Asian Para Games, like Basha, were eligible for the same sum as those from the Asian Games.
“I’ve been competing for 18 years and this is the first time this has happened,” said Basha, who earned Rs. 8 lakh for his bronze medal in Incheon last month. “The money will help me a great deal,” he said.
Athletes with multiple medals were awarded separately for each of them. So for para-swimmer Sharath Gayakwad, who won five bronze and one silver medal, a windfall of Rs. 55 lakh was in store. “We’ve been asking for equal treatment for a long time. I’m glad it has finally happened,” he said from Indore, where he is competing in the National championships.
“Our budget is not small, particularly if we want to take part in competitions overseas. With the World Championships in July next year, the money will help me in the preparation.”
Mohammad Ali Shavaad, who won a bronze medal in the 800m (T11) at the Asian Para Games, also expressed his delight. Completely blinded in a childhood incident, the 20-year-old felt Rs. 8 lakh would go a long way towards supporting his training. “My father passed away when I was five. My mother was extremely pleased on hearing this news. My aim is to qualify for the Rio Olympics of 2016,” he said.
Shavaad, from Jedikere in Chikkamagaluru district, has been offered accommodation by the high-jumper H.N. Girisha in the city. “This is a triumph for us,” the latter said.
As the Ekalavya lifetime achievement and Kreeda Rathna awards were handed out, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah promised to help athletes from the State with jobs. “I have a diploma in electronics and I even did an apprenticeship at BEL in 2000. But I’m still without a job,” Basha lamented. “The CM assured me that he would look into it. I wait in hope.”
