Taking the plunge

 Six years ago, when Pooja Agarwal met with a train accident which led to losing her left arm and one leg, the disability left her as a trilateral amputee but she never gave up her dreams. 
Taking the plunge

KOCHI: Six years ago, when Pooja Agarwal met with a train accident which led to losing her left arm and one leg, the disability left her as a trilateral amputee but she never gave up her dreams. 
Pooja fought all odds and bagged multiple medals in shooting in both national and international competitions. She stands as the strongest competitor in the SH1 category of the 10m pistol event in the National Shooting Championship. 

As part of the Barrier Free Tourism, Kerala Tourism has been allowing the differently-abled to enjoy unhindered access to various destinations in the state. 

With the same motto, Bond Safari, Kovalam, a pioneering adventure water sports organisation hosted an event where Pooja went on a scuba dive along with the other divers. She was in the city as part of the championship which is being held at Vattiyoorkavu shooting range.Pooja was extremely thrilled to dive and explore the marine life in Kovalam. 

She had once tried a swimming and the dive session in Chandigarh for the disabled. It was a swimming pool session. Since then, she always wanted to dive but due to her disability, it was getting difficult. 
Pooja, after the dive, says, “This has been one of the best experiences I had in my life. I was mesmerised being under water. I felt very much relaxed. I was happy with the introduction and the briefing session before the dive. Instructors were very clear with the instructions and made me feel at ease during the shallow water training. From the beginning till the end, we had a beautiful experience.”

Bond Safari Kovalam volunteers helped Pooja in the diving process. “When Pooja approached us for the scuba dive, we were very happy to see her determination. The pride and satisfaction on Pooja’s face after the dive was a rewarding experience for us. We wish to give all the differently-abled the same experience as part of the barrier-free tourism,” said Jackson Peter, managing director of Bond Safari Kovalam.  

Talking about Barrier Free Tourism, Pooja said she is very happy about Kerala Tourism taking the initiative to make tourist spots accessible to people who are differently-abled.  Pooja wants to be an inspiration to all differently-abled people across the globe and wants to spread the message that anyone can do scuba diving if you have the will.

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