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By:

C.S. Krishnamurthy

21 June 2025 at 2:15:51 pm

Ekta Bhyan, Quiet Gold

The strongest lessons in life rarely arrive with drumbeats. They come quietly, sit beside us, and stay long after the applause fades. I learnt this at the recent Peakst8 Festival in the world-class Padukone-Dravid Centre for Sports Excellence Bengaluru. The venue was full of ambition, energy, loud confidence and polished success stories. Yet, it was gold-winning para-athlete Ekta Bhyan who held my attention, not by raising her voice, but by lowering the noise around her. She was an integral...

Ekta Bhyan, Quiet Gold

The strongest lessons in life rarely arrive with drumbeats. They come quietly, sit beside us, and stay long after the applause fades. I learnt this at the recent Peakst8 Festival in the world-class Padukone-Dravid Centre for Sports Excellence Bengaluru. The venue was full of ambition, energy, loud confidence and polished success stories. Yet, it was gold-winning para-athlete Ekta Bhyan who held my attention, not by raising her voice, but by lowering the noise around her. She was an integral part of a panel discussing what it takes to reach the Olympics. Others spoke of pressure, fame and sacrifice. Ekta spoke of routine. Of turning up. Of patience. There were no heroic flourishes in her words. Each sentence was measured, calm and grounded. Listening to her, I sensed a deep reserve of experience. She was not trying to impress. She was simply explaining how life had unfolded. A spinal injury, in 2003, had left her paralysed. This is usually where stories pause for sympathy. Ekta’s does not. She spoke of rebuilding, not rebelling. Of learning what the body could still do, and then working patiently within those limits. Para sport entered her life quietly, not as rescue, but as direction. Over time, she found her space in the F51 club throw, a demanding discipline where balance, precision and control matter more than force. What stayed with me was her restraint. She mentioned podium finishes only in passing. International meets, Asian Para Games, world championships, all appeared briefly and then moved aside. Even the gold medal she had earned was referred to almost casually, as one would mention a milestone on a long road. For her, medals are not destinations. They are confirmations. Steely Discipline Ekta spoke about training. It is not exciting, she said. It repeats itself. Progress hides. Muscles resist. The mind looks for shortcuts. Yet commitment must remain steady. She described days when success meant completing a session without excuses. On some mornings, it was finishing gym work despite fatigue. Evenings meant outdoor practice, carefully timed because regulating body temperature is a constant challenge after spinal injury. For nearly three years, she has not missed a single day of training. With limited muscle use and only about forty per cent lung capacity, each session needs careful planning. Her shoulders are her strongest allies. Other muscles cooperate less. Fingers offer no strength at all. Still, she works with what she has. Over the last four years, this discipline has translated into results. Gold medals at national championships. A bronze at the Asian Para Games. Gold and bronze at the World Championships in Paris in 2023. This season alone, she added gold at the Indian Open Paralympic Championships and a silver soon after. Her personal best stands at 21.5 metres, and she speaks of improving it, not defending it. There was a gentler revelation too. As a young girl, Ekta had once dreamt of becoming a doctor. She wanted to heal. Life rewrote the syllabus. Yet, listening to her, I realised she still heals. Not with medicine, but with example. Her journey treats assumptions and restores belief, quietly and effectively. Human Moment After the session, when the crowd thinned, I walked up to her with my notebook. I asked for her autograph, expecting a quick signature. She paused, asked my name, and wrote hers carefully. That small act reflected everything she had spoken about. Presence. Respect. Attention. Her daily life, she earlier shared, is not simple. She needs two people to help with routine movements, from transferring to travel. Public transport is impossible. Every trip requires planning, space and expense. Often, she bears the cost for three people, not one. Yet, she spoke of this without complaint. The harder challenge, she said, is mindset. People with disabilities are still seen as separate from the mainstream. Expectations are lowered, often disguised as kindness. Ekta resists this quietly. Her competition is internal. Yesterday versus today. Comfort versus effort. Paralysis, she believes, is a condition, not an identity. As I left the venue, the applause felt inadequate. Not because it was soft, but because her journey asks for reflection, not noise. Ekta Bhyan reminds us that ambition can change shape without losing meaning. That success does not always announce itself. Sometimes, it arrives quietly, balanced and consistent. Her strength lies not only in the distance she throws, but in the steadiness she maintains. And in that quiet balance, Ekta Bhyan offers us something rare. A lesson that stays long after the hall has emptied.   (The writer is a retired banker and author of ‘Money Does Matter.’)

After circuit bench, people’s struggle is next

Kolhapur: India is racing ahead on the tracks of high-speed rail and futuristic technology. The Rs 1.08 lakh crore Mumbai–Ahmedabad bullet train project is nearing readiness, and hydrogen-powered coaches developed in Chennai have successfully been tested. Yet, Kolhapur, despite its economic and cultural significance, continues to be bypassed by the Indian Railways’ grand vision.


The contrast is stark. While massive investments are being made elsewhere, the long-pending Miraj–Kolhapur–Vaibhavwadi rail line, requiring just about Rs 3,000 crore, lies in limbo. Three surveys have been conducted, the project was included in the Gati Shakti plan, and even a bhoomipujan was done by then Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu.


But beyond paperwork, no progress has been made. If completed, this project could link southern Maharashtra with the Konkan, providing a lifeline for both freight and passenger traffic. More importantly, with Kolhapur now hosting the circuit bench of the Bombay High Court, better connectivity is an urgent necessity for litigants and citizens across six districts.


Meanwhile, Kolhapur’s existing railway services are shrinking. The Sahyadri Express has been denied permission to travel beyond Pune for the last three years. The Kolhapur–Solapur train, halted during the pandemic, has not been restored even after four years. The Rani Chennamma Express to Bengaluru has been permanently curtailed at Miraj. And the proposed Mumbai–Kolhapur Vande Bharat remains on paper, with six months of “timetable discussions” yielding nothing.


This neglect cannot be explained away by financial feasibility. The Railways has sanctioned doubling and electrification of the Miraj–Pune line but has ignored the last 46-km stretch to Kolhapur, citing cost concerns. Ironically, the same Railways finds no difficulty in justifying Rs 1 lakh crore-plus for a bullet train. When RajarshiShahu Maharaj brought the first rail line to Kolhapur at his personal expense, he could hardly have imagined that more than a century later, his city would still be fighting for basic connectivity.


Gross reluctance

The official reluctance is not just administrative—it is political. Railway events in recent months have openly revealed the bias against Kolhapur.


The deeper problem, however, is the lack of collective political will within the region itself. The lesson of the circuit bench is clear: Kolhapur gets its due only when citizens unite and apply pressure. Without such mobilisation, rail projects will remain stuck, and the city’s development will continue to be throttled.


History offers perspective. The Konkan Railway too was once dismissed as financially unviable. Today, it is the lifeline of the coastal belt. The Miraj–Vaibhavwadi line has the same transformative potential.


It can boost freight movement, decongest existing routes, and make Kolhapur a stronger link between Maharashtra and Karnataka. A Bengaluru–Kolhapur Vande Bharat is not just desirable—it is entirely practical given the heavy passenger and goods traffic along this corridor.


Kolhapur now stands at a crossroads. The city has the capacity, the demand, and the pressing need for better railway infrastructure. What it lacks is an organised public movement. After the hard-fought victory of the circuit bench, Kolhapur has already shown what people’s resolve can achieve. It is time to bring that same determination to the railway tracks.


If the people of Kolhapur do not demand their rightful share, they will continue to be left waiting—on the platform, watching development speed past them.

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