City girl bags silver in special int’l chess meet

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, July 18

Winning laurels to the city again, Mallika Handa has secured a silver medal in the International Chess Committee of the Deaf (ICCD) worldwide World Deaf Blitz Chess Championship held from July 6 to 17 at Manchester in the UK.

Mallika said the ICCD had stressed upon the need to adopt chess as Winter Deaflympics.

She said if approved, the game would be included in the 19th Winter Deaflympics to be held in 2019.

A specially abled girl, Mallika, was given a rousing reception by the district administration at the local railway station on her return to Jalandhar after bagging the silver medal during the fifth ICCD World Deaf Blitz Chess Championship in Manchester.

Officials of the district administration, led by Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Paramveer Singh, welcomed Mallika as she stepped down from the Amritsar-bound Shatabdi Express from New Delhi, on Wednesday afternoon. The girl, flanked by her mother Renu Handa, father Suresh Handa and brother Atul Handa, was also garlanded by sports lovers. Felicitating Mallika on her rare feat, the SDM said she had created history by bagging the medal in the international event that too in chess.

The SDM said Handa had made the state proud by achieving a stupendous success in such a tender age.

He said it was a matter of great honour for all Punjabis that Handa has made a niche in the brainy game of chess across the world with her sheer hard work and dedication.

Paramveer expressed hope that her rare accomplishment would go a long way in inspiring millions, who strive hard to excel in this field.

Wishing her a bright future in life, the SDM hoped that she would bring more laurels to the state and the country. Paramveer also congratulated her parents and friends.

District sports officer Balwinder Singh, district guidance counsellor Surjit Lal, Red Cross Secretary Paramjit Singh, coaches from the Sports Department Umesh Sharma, Jaspreet Singh, Lovejeet Singh, Gurpreet Singh, Arihant Kumar, Paramjit Singh, Love Kumar and Manish Tiwari, Congress leaders Ashwani Jangral, Rajesh Agnihotri, Tarsem Thapa, Nasir Salmani and Om Prakash were among those others present.