Less than a week after an eight-year-old was lured from a wedding function and raped and then murdered in Uttar Pradesh’s Etah district, a nine-year-old was raped and killed in the district the same way on Friday, police said.

The accused is a boy who was part of the cooking team hired for a pre-wedding ceremony in Kailtha village.

He lured the girl to a field behind the venue where he raped her and then strangled her as she tried to raise an alarm, the police said.

The girl was taken to a hospital where she died,

Police are looking for two other youths allegedly involved in the crime.

On Monday, another girl went missing from a wedding she had gone to attend with her family in Etah. Her body was found the next morning in a field. A drunk youth, found lying beside her, was arrested on suspicion of raping and murdering her.

She knew who she was, and she saw no need to apologize for it. In the spring of 1990, the administration of Wellesley College — the alma mater, as it happened, of Hillary Rodham Clinton — invited Barbara Bush, then the first lady of the United States, to speak at commencement and receive an honorary degree. Students at the women’s college protested, declaring in a petition that Mrs. Bush had “gained recognition through the achievements of her husband,” and adding that Wellesley “teaches us that we will be rewarded on the basis of our own merit, not on that of a spouse.”

And so a generational battle was joined. As her husband, George H. W. Bush, put it in his private White House diary, Mrs. Bush was being attacked “because she hasn’t made it on her own — she’s where she is because she’s her husband’s wife.” Mr. Bush added: “What’s wrong with the fact that she’s a good mother, a good wife, great volunteer, great leader for literacy and other fine causes? Nothing, but to listen to these elitist kids there is.” To the young women of the last decade of the 20th century, Mrs. Bush, who had dropped out of Smith College to marry, seemed a throwback to a less enlightened time.

Mrs. Bush, who died on Tuesday at age 92, never flinched, appearing at Wellesley and using her commencement address to explore the complexities of life’s choices. There was no single path, she told the graduates; one followed one’s heart and did the best one could. “Maybe we should adjust faster, maybe we should adjust slower,” she said. “But whatever the era, whatever the times, one thing will never change: Fathers and mothers, if you have children — they must come first. You must read to your children, hug your children, and you must love your children. Your success as a family, our success as a society, depends not on what happens in the White House, but on what happens inside your house.”

The loudest applause came when she remarked that perhaps there was someone in the audience who would, like her, one day preside over the White House as the president’s spouse. “And I wish him well,” Mrs. Bush said.

It was classic Barbara Pierce Bush: politically skillful, balanced — and good for her husband, for she presented herself as at once reasonable and reasonably conservative, which was the essence of Mr. Bush’s own political persona.

Barbara Bush was the first lady of the Greatest Generation — a woman who came of age at midcentury, endured a world war, built a life in Texas, raised her family, lost a daughter to leukemia, and promoted first her husband’s rise in politics, and then that of her sons. As the wife of one president and the mother of another, she holds a distinction that belongs to only one other American in the history of the Republic, Abigail Adams.

It’s neither sentimental nor hyperbolic to note that Barbara Bush was the last first lady to preside over an even remotely bipartisan capital. She and her husband were masters of what Franklin D. Roosevelt once referred to as “the science of human relationships.”

Part of the reason grew out of the generational and cultural disposition that had prompted the Wellesley protesters to speak out. Born in New York City in 1925, raised in Rye, N.Y., and long shaped by the WASP code of her mother-in-law, Dorothy Walker Bush, Mrs. Bush was reflexively hospitable. The elder Bushes governed in a spirit of congeniality and of civility, a far cry from the partisan ferocity of our own time. In her White House — and at Camp David and at Walker’s Point, the family’s compound on the coast of Maine — Democrats and Republicans were welcomed with equal frequency and equal grace.

She had always known what she was getting into, for George H. W. Bush saw life as both a great adventure and as a long reunion mixer. After graduating from Yale in 1948, Mr. Bush drove himself to Odessa, Tex., sending for Barbara and George W., who had been born in 1946, once he’d rented half a duplex they were to share with a mother-daughter team of prostitutes. It was the first of 27 moves the Bushes would make on their American odyssey.

Writing her parents from Odessa to thank them for sending $25 to pay for nursery school for George W., Mrs. Bush reported that “G.W.B. has a wee bit of the Devil in him. This a.m. while I was writing a letter early he stuck a can opener into my leg. Very painful and it was all I could do to keep from giving him a jab or two.” They would lovingly tease each other for decades; George W. Bush often said he had inherited his father’s eyes and his mother’s mouth.

And her tongue could be sharp. In 1984, after she unwisely described Geraldine Ferraro, who campaigned against her husband as Walter Mondale’s vice-presidential running mate, as a word that rhymed with “rich,” she acknowledged that her family was now referring to her as the “poet laureate.”

She was tireless in her advocacy for literacy, and in 1989, at a time when AIDS was still shrouded in mystery and misunderstanding, Mrs. Bush visited a home for H.I.V.-infected infants in Washington, and hugged the children there, as well as an infected adult man. It sent a powerful message — one of compassion, of love, of acceptance. Her popularity as first lady was such that, in 1992, some voters sported buttons with a final plea for the World War II generation: “Re-Elect Barbara’s Husband.”

A Sikh woman pilgrim from Hoshiarpur district has reportedly converted to Islam and married a Lahore-based Pakistan national, reports reaching her family in Punjab have indicated.

Her old father-in-law, Tarsem Singh, alleged on Thursday that his daughter-in-law could have fallen into the hands of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), and may have been forced to convert and remarry there.

The woman, Kiran Bala, who left for Pakistan on a pilgrimage as part of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) delegation on April 12, reportedly went missing on April 16.

She went to Pakistan on her Indian passport with Pakistan visa valid till April 21.

As per Pakistani media reports, the woman embraced Islam from Darul-Aloom Jamia Naeemia in Lahore on April 16 and later performed ‘nikah’ (marriage) with Muhammed Azam, a resident of Hanjarwal Multan Road in Lahore.

However, what is curious is that in her application for extension of the Pakistan visa, her name is typed as Amna Bibi while the signature has been done as Amina.

She has applied for extension of visa, citing “threats of assassination” to her life in India, before Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad, a report in Daily Times said.

The News also posted pictures of the woman and her visa extension application on its website.

Around 1,700 Indian pilgrims had gone to Pakistan to visit Sikh shrines, including Panja Sahib Gurdwara near Lahore and Nankana Sahib — the birth place of Sikhism founder Guru Nanak Dev, on the occasion of Baisakhi on April 13.

Kiran Bala, 31, a widow, is the mother of three. She was living with her in-laws at their village house in Garhshankar sub-division of Punjab, around 90 km from Chandigarh.

The children are with their aged grandparents. Their father had passed away in 2013.

“I had dropped my daughter-in-law with SGPC officials in Amritsar on April 10 for the pilgrimage in Pakistan. The ‘jatha’ is expected to return on April 21.

“I cannot believe what has happened. No one has contacted us officially from the SGPC and the foreign ministry. I want my daughter-in-law to be returned safely,” Tarsem Singh, a Sikh religious preacher in his village, told the media.

Tarsem Singh alleged that Kiran Bala could be in touch with the Pakistani man (whom she has reportedly married) through social media, particularly Facebook.

He alleged that she was using social media frequently on her mobile phone in the past one month.

The visit of the Indian pilgrims to Pakistan has been mired in controversies in the past one week with Pakistani agencies and officials denying permission to Indian embassy officials there from meeting the visiting delegation members.

Posters of Khalistan, a separate Sikh homeland, have also been put up at the places where the Indian delegation is visiting.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India tweets frequently and considers himself a talented orator. Yet he loses his voice when it comes to speaking out about the dangers faced by women and minorities who are frequent targets of the nationalist and communal forces that are part of the base of his Bharatiya Janata Party.

Indians took to the streets during the weekend to protest their government’s callous response to the horrifying rape and murder of an 8-year-old girl in January in which supporters of his political party have been implicated. Mr. Modi, though, has barely spoken about this crime and other cases involving his supporters.

Until last week, he declined to address the attack on the girl, in the northern state of Jammu and Kashmir, by men who wanted to frighten and drive away her nomadic Muslim community, the Bakarwals, from an area that is dominated by Hindus. To read about what happened to the girl, who was held and abused at a Hindu temple, over several days is to plumb the depths of human depravity.

As Mr. Modi remained quiet as public outrage built up for weeks, state lawmakers from his party, which is part of a coalition that governs Jammu and Kashmir, attended a rally in support of a man who had been arrested for the crime and joined in demands by locals that the investigation be taken away from state officials, some of whom are Muslim, and be turned over to federal authorities. After a mob of Hindu lawyers temporarily prevented the authorities from registering charges in court, officials have formally accused eight men, including policemen and a retired government employee.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India tweets frequently and considers himself a talented orator. Yet he loses his voice when it comes to speaking out about the dangers faced by women and minorities who are frequent targets of the nationalist and communal forces that are part of the base of his Bharatiya Janata Party.

Indians took to the streets during the weekend to protest their government’s callous response to the horrifying rape and murder of an 8-year-old girl in January in which supporters of his political party have been implicated. Mr. Modi, though, has barely spoken about this crime and other cases involving his supporters.

Until last week, he declined to address the attack on the girl, in the northern state of Jammu and Kashmir, by men who wanted to frighten and drive away her nomadic Muslim community, the Bakarwals, from an area that is dominated by Hindus. To read about what happened to the girl, who was held and abused at a Hindu temple, over several days is to plumb the depths of human depravity.

As Mr. Modi remained quiet as public outrage built up for weeks, state lawmakers from his party, which is part of a coalition that governs Jammu and Kashmir, attended a rally in support of a man who had been arrested for the crime and joined in demands by locals that the investigation be taken away from state officials, some of whom are Muslim, and be turned over to federal authorities. After a mob of Hindu lawyers temporarily prevented the authorities from registering charges in court, officials have formally accused eight men, including policemen and a retired government employee.

Mr. Modi has also been reluctant to talk about a rape accusation against a state lawmaker from his party in India’s most populous state, Uttar Pradesh, which is governed by the B.J.P. A teenage girl says the lawmaker raped her last summer, but until recently the police have dragged their feet in bringing charges against him. He and his brother are also accused of conspiring to kill the girl’s father, who was found dead in police custody.

On Friday, Mr. Modi said that these cases had brought shame on the country and that “our daughters will definitely get justice.” But his remarks ring hollow because he waited so long to talk about the cases and spoke in broad generalities — describing the crimes as “incidents being discussed since past two days.” He has taken a similar approach in the past when addressing cases in which vigilante groups affiliated with his political movement have attacked and killed Muslims and Dalits — members of India’s lowest caste — who they falsely accused of killing cows, which are sacred to Hindus.

Mr. Modi’s silence is as perplexing as it is distressing. He seems to have failed to learn the lesson of his predecessors who did not forcefully respond to protests in late 2012 and early 2013 after a young woman was raped and killed on a public bus in New Delhi. That government, which was led by the Congress party, paid a heavy political price for its heartlessness in the 2014 parliamentary elections; the B.J.P. won the elections in large part because Mr. Modi promised to make the government more responsive to the needs of Indians who were left behind by a government dogged by corruption scandals and widely considered rudderless.

Instead, he has exhibited a pattern of silence and deflection that is deeply worrying to anybody who cares about the health of the world’s largest democracy.

Mr. Modi cannot be expected to discuss every crime committed by someone who supports him. But these cases are not isolated or random examples of violence. They are part of an organized and systematic campaign by nationalist forces that want to terrorize women, Muslims, Dalits and other underprivileged citizens.

The prime minister has a duty to safeguard and fight for all of the people of India, not just those who are allied with him politically.

The Former First Lady of the US, Barbara Bush, died on Tuesday at the age of 92 after having been in failing health for some time, a family spokesperson said.

“A former First Lady of the US and relentless proponent of family literacy, Barbara Pierce Bush passed away Tuesday, April 17, 2018 at the age of 92,” Bush family spokesperson Jim McGrath said in a statement.

The cause of her death has not yet been revealed, but on Sunday a family spokesman had said that Mrs. Bush decided to refuse further medical treatment, except for “comfort care”, Efe reported.

The wife of former President George H.W. Bush (1989-1993) and mother of former President George W. Bush (2001-2009) had suffered chronic obstructive pulmonary disease for some time, which affected her cardiac capacity and led to hospitalisation on numerous occasions over the past years.

“Barbara Bush was a fabulous first lady and a woman unlike any other who brought levity, love, and literacy to millions. To us, she was so much more. Mom kept us on our toes and kept us laughing until the end. I’m a lucky man that Barbara Bush was my mother,” George W. Bush said in a statement released by the George W. Bush Presidential Center.

Born on June 8, 1925 in New York, Barbara Pierce — her maiden name — was the second woman in the US history to be the wife of one US President and the mother of another, the first being Abigail Adams in the early 19th century.

She became very popular in her country as an advocate for universal literacy, a cause for which she actively participated with various organisations and to which she felt very close as her son Neil was diagnosed as dyslexic.

The former first lady continued her crusade for literacy and created her own foundation, “The Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy,” which globally supports organisations that promote reading habits among children and adults.

(IANS)

A collective of journalists in Tamil Nadu have lashed out against Governor Banwarilal Purohit for patting the cheek of a lady reporter without taking her permission. In a letter addressed to him late on Tuesday night, the journalists have demanded that he should issue an unconditional apology.
“unbecoming” of a person holding a Constitutional post. The incident took place when the 78-year-old Governor was about to leave the venue of the crowded press conference at the Raj Bhavan, which was all set to conclude.

DMK Rajya Sabha MP Kanimozhi tweeted “even if the intention is above supsicion, a person who holds a public office has to understand that there is a decorum to it and violating a woman journalist’s personal space does not reflect the dignity or the respect which should be shown to any human being.” “It is not only unfortunate, but unbecoming of a person holding a constitutional post,” DMK Working President M K Stalin said in his twitter handle.

In their letter to Purohit, the collective of TN journalists too have sought to remind him that his act was even more shocking because he is a constitutional figure. “Your action today in touching the cheek of a senior lady reporter who asked you a question at the press meet was patronising at best and a violation of her rights as a woman at worst,” read the letter. “It, however, does not behove the Constitutional head of a State to throw basic courtesy and respect to the winds and attempt to touch a lady without her consent, even if the gesture may have been ‘paternal’ in nature. “

A charge-sheet has been filed against four Delhi University (DU) students for “misbehaving” with Information and Broadcasting Minister Smriti Irani on an occasion in 2017, police said on Tuesday.

A senior Delhi Police officer told IANS that the charge sheet was filed on Monday against the four on charges of “stalking, drunken driving and insulting the modesty of a woman”.

In April 2017, four DU students were arrested for “chasing, misbehaving and overtaking” Smriti Irani’s car in an inebriated state in the Chanakyapuri area here.

They were arrested following a complaint by the Minister’s security staff.

‘I don’t know how long I will be alive. I can be raped…My modesty can be outraged,’ Lawyer Deepika S Rajawat said.
Amid nation-wide protests against the rape and murder of 8-year-old girl in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua, the lawyer of the victim’s family says that she has been receiving threats and said she will approach the Supreme Court requesting protection.

Lawyer Deepika S Rajawat says she fears she can be “raped or killed”.
I was threatened yesterday that ‘we will not forgive you’. I am going to tell the Supreme Court tomorrow that I am in danger,” Rajawat said on Sunday.
On Monday, the victim’s father requested the Supreme Court to shift the trial outside Jammu and Kashmir, citing safety and security for his family.

“We don’t think there is conducive atmosphere in Kathua for the trial,” said Rajawat.

Last week, Rajawat appeared on a television channel and alleged that she was threatened by Jammu Bar Association president BS Slathia from appearing in the case.

“I am not a member of the Jammu Bar Association. But on Wednesday, Slathia asked me to stay away from the case while I was going to the court. I am not answerable to him, I am only answerable to my client,” she told TV channels.

“I am not scared, but I am not feeling safe either. Protesters (lawyers) are trying to put pressure on me so that I don’t fight for justice. But I will continue to fight Asifa’s case. I have full faith in the police investigation,” Rajawat added.

The trial in the Kathua rape began from Monday.

The incident has left the country shocked and angry and thousands of protesters took to streets voicing their concern over security of girls and women.

Six men, including a retired revenue official, two police officers and a minor have been accused of kidnapping, gangraping and murdering the minor from the nomadic Bakherwal community in Kathua in January this year. Two other policemen have been charged with trying to cover up the crime for money.

The girl’s body was found on January 17. After the accused were arrested, a group called the Hindu Ekta Manch took out protests in which two BJP ministers and a lawyers’ body linked to the Congress participated.

The case gained national attention after a police chargesheet revealed that the girl was kept in a local temple, gangraped repeatedly, and kept sedated and without food before being strangled. Her head was also smashed with a large rock. Just before she was killed, one of the accused, a police officer, insisted on raping her one last time.

A group of lawyers had tried to present the police from submitting the chargesheet.

According to the “OECD Health Statistics 2014: How Does India Compare” report, the overall health spending accounted for only four per cent of the GDP in India in 2012, out of which only 33 per cent of health spending was funded by public sources. Further, health accounted for only 4.8 per cent of total government spending in 2012. India ranks extremely high even among other developing countries in out-of-pocket costs on healthcare.

The “Global Adult Tobacco Survey 2016-17” says that tobacco smoking is a major preventable risk factor for a number of causes of death. In India, 10.7 per cent adults smoked daily in 2010 and it remains so even in 2016. When measuring the exposure of second-hand smoke in households, women are at a higher risk (39.3 per cent) in comparison to men (38.1 per cent) but unfortunately our policies remain passive on this issue.

With the dismal condition of healthcare in India, the provisions for healthcare are even worse when it comes to women-specific diseases. Generally, women’s health receives attention only during pregnancy; this comes from our patriarchal understanding of women’s role in society.

Cardiovascular disease, stroke, kidney disease, respiratory diseases and trauma are major causes of death for women worldwide. The health profile of India by WHO reveals that women have a higher life expectancy in comparison to men, but this is marred by disorders like musculoskeletal diseases, depression, etc. Social structures and prejudices also create an environment in which women’s health and well-being are further compromised.

Due to a lack of disease-specific data on gender differences, there is a complete absence of evidence about preventive care for women, along with issues like increased consumption of tobacco, alcohol and drugs. Gender disparities have also crept into healthcare delivery and women’s access to treatment.

Traditionally, much of the work done by women is performed within the context of the family. As women move beyond their traditional occupations in today’s era, they meet new health hazards which add to the existing occupational hazards.

Globally, psychological violence at work, especially bullying, violence, mobbing and harassment (including sexual harassment) are reported to be major concerns for women. Many studies show that women are at particular risk of physical and psychological violence both in and outside the workplace. But this is rarely considered under the banner of occupational safety and health. Appropriate indicators must be established when examining compensation for work accidents and injuries in such cases.

As a result of the neglect of women’s occupational injuries, women are reported to be at much lower risk of occupational injuries and accidents. For instance, till recently, deteriorating respiratory health due to pollution from household cooking was not considered an occupational health issue. Whatever little data is available on women’s occupational health and safety issues is mostly aggregated and this ignores many important aspects of women’s health profiles.

A UN study of 31 countries shows women are working 10 to 30 per cent more hours than men and that two-thirds of women’s work is unpaid, unvalued and invisible. Yet our national health programmes fail to address health issues pertinent to women.

Low participation rate of women in the labour market is also attributed to uncertain occupational health and safety. Thus, there is a high urgency for a comprehensive plan for women’s health whether in the workplace, household, or other spheres.

(IANS)

DEEPA MALIK, a silver medalist, Rio Paralympic 2016 shows you how “Life is a festival which you celebrate every day.”

Deepa Malik, 46 years, is an athlete and the first Indian woman who has won a medal in Paralympic Games and a Silver medal at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in the shot put. As an adventure sportsperson, she is a part of the Himalayan Motorsports Association (H.M.A.) and Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (F.M.S.C.I.). She has undertaken an 8-day, 1700-km drive in sub-zero temperatures which included a climb to 18000 feet. It was – Raid De Himalaya. This journey covers many difficult paths including the remote Himalayas, Leh, Shimla and Jammu.

She has also been awarded the Arjuna award (2012) and the President Role Model award (2014). She has worked to formulate the 12th five-year plan (2012–2017) on Sports and Physical Education as nominated by the Planning Commission HRD Division, on behalf of the Sports Ministry as part of the working group.
We have already told you about her life journey before, The Extraordinary Story Of Deepa Malik, Silver Medalist, Rio Paralympics 2016. Nevertheless, here are a few things we need to learn from her and imbibe in our lives.
You Write Your Own Destiny
Deepa was bedridden at age 6; the doctors took one year to diagnose her condition. She had her first surgery at age 7 for a spinal tumour. Post that, next two years was all about aggressive rehabilitation, intensive physical activity and occupational therapy. As a vivacious and outdoorsy person, she found opportunity in her physical rehabilitation. It became her way to innovate, discover and drive her passion for sports.

She adapted to sports, showed a sense of seriousness and purpose and didn’t let her health be a barrier or impediment in any way. Her spinal tumour re-emerged and at the age of 29 and she was paralysed waist down. Deepa is on a lifelong tumour management treatment. But all this did not deter her from chasing her dreams and turning them into a reality.

Besides the medal in Paralympic Games and a Silver medal at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in the shot put, her list of international and national awards is exemplary and extensive. In the last few years, they also include awards like PC Athletics World Championship, Doha 2015 | Diploma (5th Position) – (Shotput), IPC Oceania Asian Championship, Dubai March 2016 | 1 Gold (Jav), 1 Silver (Shotput), Incheon Asian Para Games 2014 – Silver medal in women’s 53–54 Javelin with a new Asian Record and IPC 2nd China Open Athletics Championship Beijing 10–17 April 2014– Shot put F53-55 Gold etc.

Deepa’s grit, tenacity, passion and intent remained unbeaten and she turned around her life. Where most people would give up and resign to a life of hopelessness and despair, she fought grave circumstances, distressing life conditions and exigent physical, emotional, mental, psychological factors.

Designing ways to fuel her passion in a constructive way, she ensured her own contentment and triumph.

Inspiration Can Come From The Mundane In Your Life

For Deepa, her parents have been her most important teachers, mentors and inspiration. They have moulded her to be a strong person. Even after suffering from severe disabilities, she has always been bold, confident and never gave up hope. She says, “Without them, I won’t be the Deepa Malik I am today.”

An early riser like her father, from him she has learnt to make the most of things and turn even a nightmare into an opportunity. As an army man, every time he got posted he would take up the first available accommodation, which most others would turn down, as it would be one the old dilapidated British bungalow. Most other officers avoided taking it up as it would be inhabitable. But in no time, he would get it painted, change the plumbing and renovate a ramshackle house into a stunning, expansive, vintage and beautiful home. This is how she discovers power and prospects in the most forbidden and negative circumstances.

Deepa’s mother hails from an orthodox, conservation and lower middle-class family of four sisters. Even then in her time, she was a part of the debate club, an NCC cadet who participated in the Republic Day parade and went on to become the rifle shooter for Maharaja Karni Singh, Bikaner’s rifle shooting team. Deepa believes that her mother is her role model – from her, she learnt how to thrive, grow and achieve her goals against all odds.

For her husband when she got paralysed waist down, it was never an issue. He never stops her from feeding her spirit, passions and yearnings. Before her marriage, her parents were always scared that rather than recuperating from surgeries she was busy playing sports and riding bikes. But her then future husband totally backed her decision to ride. She knew he would never come in her way of growth. She was wise enough to perceive that he was the right person as a life partner for her. Life partners create that environment, space and support for each other to soar higher.

Disability Is A State Of Mind

The biggest challenge for her in this journey has been to find wheelchair accessible places and parking. She battles with infrastructure. India lacks sensitization about disability. Trainers lack sensitizations, awareness and knowledge, even though they work with the athlete. They do not study, customize, and harmonize sports sciences to bring about the best solutions for the athlete who is differently abled.

India needs to treat Paralympics as main stream sports in our country. As Deepa says, “The health of the nation is known by how the senior citizens, women and physically challenged are doing in that country.”

She rightly believes that our country will truly become that ’emerging, smart and modern India’ when the infrastructure, policy, funding, sponsorship, training and opportunities for a physically challenged person becomes egalitarian and accessible.

Deepa had to open a restaurant and become a motivational speaker to raise funds for training. She exerts, “CSR needs to wake up and invest in the health of the physically challenged for our nation.”

An astounding success of India in Paralympics will result in altering the global image of the nation to a 180-degree turnaround to positive, where every citizen will get sensitized, more medals will be won for the nation and it will be the best way to keep a person with disability healthy and happy.

Life Is A Festival

She beautifully puts, “Life is a festival, which you celebrate every day.”
One cannot just wait on the fence, play the victim card, blame others or circumstances or look for excuses. It is imperative to walk forward and create your own way to achieve your purpose. Even when things, opportunities, support and finances were not available, Deepa found ways to go ahead and did not let any challenge hold her back.

With self-belief, confidence, faith and the capacity for hard work, she created the infrastructure and “blood group” of people who stand out for each other in adventure sports. She used social media, technology and core groups of bikers and rally sportsperson to fight through her way in the country.

As reported, “Deepa Malik was the first person ever to receive a license for invalid (modified) rally vehicle, a case she consistently pursued for 19 months in Maharashtra. She is also the first physically challenged individual in the country to receive an official rally license from the Federation Motor Sports Club of India (FMSCI) and become a navigator and driver in the toughest car rallies of the country like Raid-de-HIMALAYA 2009 and Desert Storm 2010.”

Tehelka reported, “Malik set a Limca Book record for riding the first special bike for paraplegics in 2009. When she received a special license to drive a hand-controlled car, she undertook a record drive of 3,000 km from Delhi to Leh and back, through high altitude passes.

After undergoing hydrotherapy at the Spinal Injuries Centre, she became the first disabled person to swim for a kilometre in the Yamuna against the current.”

And so, if you’re ever feeling down or demotivated, think of Deepa Malik who literally did not let anything come in between her and her dreams.