The Hindu : His aim is to enter the record books

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jan 08, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka - Mysore

His aim is to enter the record books

Naveen plunges into the Kabini Reservoir.

Mysore Jan. 7. Naveen (27), a construction worker at Ashokapuram in Mysore, has set his target high. For him, nothing less than a record will do, and if things work out well for him, one may see Naveen swimming from Kanyakumari to Sri Lanka which is his avowed objective.

Naveen told The Hindu that he learnt swimming at the age of nine without any training.

He claims that he can dive as deep as 55 feet and emerge out of water within 1.5 minutes. Naveen is always sought out for unenviable tasks like fishing out bodies from lakes and rivers. He has fished out 30 bodies, this, he says is a "testimony'' to his skills and the confidence reposed in him by police to emerge out of water unscathed.

He has other testimonials to his credit. For instance, when the government-installed borewell stopped functioning on the Nugu waterbed, he dived 50 feet into the river and emerged out with the motor within 90 seconds. But it was during the Kargil conflict, Naveen decided to swim against the tide to collect money for the Kargil Relief Fund. He swam in the Kabini for 15 hours without a break, covering 72 km. to raise funds for the relief fund.

As Naveen says, "I dropped out of the 10th standard, and I am aware of my limitations. But I am possessed by the spirit of adventure and a desire to achieve something that will satisfy me, and enrich my existence.''

He has a quaint way of practising. His father is an employee in the Irrigation Department at H.D. Kote. Whenever time permits, Naveen goes to H.D. Kote to take a dip in the backwaters of the Kabini Reservoir. Each dip lasts more than 12 hours or for a change, he will swim from the Kharapura Jungle Lodge to the reservoir, covering 28 km.

His other feats include swimming in the rough waters of the Arabian Sea in Goa and Mangalore. But lack of proper employment has hampered his future goal. He feels that his services can be utilised as a lifeguard or in a rescue team.

An adventure club has invited him to take up such a job, but nothing concrete has materialised so far. Naveen has not given up hopes in his quest for landing a job on water.

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