PROUD MOMENT: Achievers who were felicitated by Governor T.N. Chaturvedi in Bangalore on Friday. — Photo: Sampath Kumar G.P.

BANGALORE: Several individuals who overcame adversity to become achievers and organisations working for social welfare were felicitated by Governor T.N. Chaturvedi at the Raj Bhavan on Friday.

One of them was Ram Chandra Kallappa Poojar from Gokak who lost his hands while clearing landmines in Anantnag in Jammu and Kashmir. He was attacked by terrorists while on the job.

International hockey player V.R. Raghunath, who was in the team that won the sub-junior Asia Cup at Dhaka in March 2003, and participated in the 2004 Australia series and the India-Pakistan series in 2005 and tournaments in Holland and Poland, was honoured.

The Governor felicitated Keerthikiran H. Poojar, from Hospet, Bellary district, a tribal student who scored the highest marks in the II PUC examination in April 2006. Visually impaired Babunaik Rayanaikar of Belgaum, who scored 513 marks in the II PUC examination in April 2006; another partially blind student Shruthi B. Shetty from Dakshina Kannada, who scored 533 marks in the II PUC examination last year, and Shruthi M. from Davangere, a physically handicapped student who scored 420 marks in the SSLC examination, were also felicitated.

The organisations that were felicitated by the Governor are: Sri Maithri Association, Davangere district, which has been working to prevent parent-to-child transmission of HIV. The institution also runs two old-age homes, orphanages and a lace manufacturing unit where rural women are being trained.

Shakti Association, Davangere, which runs homes for widows and destitute children, old-age homes and rehabilitates street children and child labourers.

Seva Associates, Raichur, which runs family planning centres and institutions providing free vocational education. It runs a Lambani handicrafts centre and trains women in making candles, soap and other products.

Mahila Kalyana Samsthe, Shahpur, Belgaum, which runs counselling centres for people in troubled marriages and provides training and rehabilitation for destitute women.

Parikrma Humanity Foundation, which provides quality education to poor children in urban areas. Parikrma runs four centres for 730 children from 26 slum communities and orphanages. The foundation received a special citation and a cash award of Rs. 20,000.

Jyamse Thotung from Manipur is a destitute, and football is first love. This student of Parikrma is in the eighth standard and is an ace at studies too. He has already become a model for other students, and he received a special award of Rs. 10,000 along with the Republic Day felicitation.

The awardees and those who were felicitated later joined the high tea on the lawns of Raj Bhavan hosted by the Governor.

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