Mhow: Jaiprakash Nautiyal is in Mhow for the National Para Shooting Selection Trials, which are underway at the Army Marksmanship Unit, Mhow. He is a key figure in India’s para shooting fraternity and has played a vital role in taking para athletes from across the country to the international stage. He discussed key issues and challenges before para athletes, the scope of Para shooting in India and the world and the results, para shooters have given to the country in slightly more than a decade.
“Nearly 10 years back, when we started, there were only 11 para shooters in the country and the number has risen to 1100 today. Just because of their performance in shooting, 160 of them have been inducted in government jobs and 23 have been awarded with cash prizes of one crore or above by the respective governments. There are three blind shooters who have won in international competitions while seven blind shooters have won at national level. To the surprise of the whole shooting fraternity, Lt Col Dwarkesh Chandrashekhar, who is fully blind, scores between 624 and 627, which is a score of the normal shooters scoring medals at the international level”, said Nautiyal. For blind shooters who have zero vision, he said that there is an apparatus called VI machine, which costs 1.5 lakh and it enables the shooter to get his weapon aligned with the target.
“What para sportspersons want from the society is not sympathy but cooperation and treating us at par with the normal sportspersons and the strange aspect of our state is that anybody can undergo an accident and become a member of our community because most of us have become handicapped due to an accident in the life”, he said cited example of shooter Pooja Agrawal, 36 of Bangalore, who was a college lectures but an accident changed her life completely. Despite that she didn’t give up and started shooting and has excelled to the level that she is a manager of Allahabad Bank due to her shooting achievement.
On comparison of achievements of para shooters with normal shooters, Nautiyal said, “Normal shooters have won 7 medals in 75 years while para shooters have won 9 medals in 10 years, if we see competitions of world cup and Olympic level. This is the achievement and it will keep growing in the every coming year. In all four pistol events, Indian para shooters are at the top of the world”.
On the criteria of selection of shooters for para shooting, he said that the Paralympic Committee of India does this selection on internationally laid down principles and that is the reason that only 1100 shooters have become eligible out of 4600 candidates that had applied as they were handicapped and were having certificates from the government authorities. Nautiyal clarified that there are 20 points, under which those applicants are examined and if they don’t fulfill the criteria.
“There are 9 rifle and 4 pistol events at international level and as far as our shooters are concerned, we are rocking in all 4 pistol events and are able to merely take part only in one rifle event because of the issue of logistics. In case of rifle event, the para shooter has to carry goods and baggage weighing nearly 75 kilograms, which is not easy, even for a normal shooter. If that athlete gets a helper, then only it is possible for him or her. To get more medals, we need to increase our rifle contingent, for which financial assistance from the government is needed”, said Nautiyal on what para shooters require for excelling in the field.
“Future of para shooting is very bright and there are a large number of budding shooters in the organization. Our organization will give many more international medals to the country in coming years”, said Nautiyal.
contact: drrajeshjauhri@gmail.com
Dr Rajesh Jauhri is a Journalist with an experience of over 25 years in Indian and foreign media, a Social Scientist, an Ac-complished Author, a Political & Strategic Analyst, a Marksman (Rifle & Pistol), an Orator, a Thinker and an Educationist. He holds a Ph.D. degree on “Impact of colonial heritage on Indian police”. He runs an NGO dedicated to the social and eco-nomic uplift of tribal communities in MP and two decades back, he established a school in a village of Indore district, providing education and moral values to children belonging to underprivileged and minority families. Has received multiple awards in various fields.
