VISAKHAPATNAM: Despite being one of the winners of Uttam Jeevan Raksha Padak awards—which were conferred by President Ram Nath Kovind on Monday—16-year-old Kalagarla Sahithi from Narsipatnam did not receive any intimation regarding the same, claimed her parents.“We received no call, letter or any kind of intimation stating that our daughter has won the Uttam Jeevan Raksha Padak award.
We only found out about this after being flooded with calls from reporters,” said Nagajyoti, 16-year-old Sahithi’s mother. “People from the media were calling us asking if they can talk to her (Sahithi), but I didn’t understand why. They were the ones to inform us that she is an awardee. It’s quite sad that people across the country knew about this but we didn’t,” she added.
Sahiti is currently pursuing her education at Sri Viswa IIT and Medical Academy and Junior College at Narsipatnam in Vizag district. Her parents—Sarveswara Rao and Nagajyoti—hoped that they receive the award certificate and medal as soon as possible. In November of 2018, Sahiti, a highly-skilled swimmer, rescued two children, then eight and five, from drowning at Revvupolavaram Beach. Despite learning to swim as a hobby, the 16-year-old used her skill to save two lives.
Sahithi won 32 world records for participating in various swimming competitions and completing projects. She has also created new Vajra World Records by performing Padmasana and Savasana for seven hours while floating in water, at the age of 14 .
President Ram Nath Kovind approved the conferment of the Jeevan Raksha Padak series of awards, to 40 people on Monday, ahead of 72nd Republic Day. Jeevan Raksha Padak awards are given to persons for meritorious acts of saving lives. The awards are given in three categories: Sarvottam Jeevan Raksha Padak, Uttam Jeevan Raksha Padak and Jeevan Raksha Padak.