Eklavya Awards a major morale booster

INDORE: Dheeraj Dave, Anandita Gupta and Oshin Tawani, the three players selected from Indore for excellence in wrestling, squash and shooting, respectively, will receive the prestigious Eklavya Award from chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on August 29. They said that the awards have come as a big moral booster and they will toil hard to do well in national and international platforms.
"It will be a great honour for me to receive the award from chief minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan and I think my hard work has paid," says Dheeraj Dave, the wrestler. He says he has been learning wrestling since he was a kid and his big brother, a kabaddi player, is his inspiration.
"I have played 14 nationals in which I won one gold, four silver and four bronze medals. I dream of winning a medal in Olympics like Sushil Kumar. He is my ideal. I am preparing for the junior nationals wrestling," says the young wrestler. Anandita Gupta, another Eklavya Awardee, has excelled in squash. A student from the Daly College began playing squash from the age of 11 years. Her siblings supported her decision to take it as serious sport activity. She says, "I used to play tennis earlier, but somehow got interested in squash. Since then my interest developed for game."
She has won bronze medal at national-level and is the first girl from the state to receive it. She stood 10th in the Asian squash ranking in Sri Lanka. "My parents and I are equally happy and this award has encouraged to perform much better in the upcoming championship." Similarly, Mhow-based shooter Oshin Tawani had developed interest in shooting since she was three. Her father Dr Om Prakash Tawani said the family is proud of her latest achievement. and wants her to excel.
The Mhow-based girl got selected in MP State Shooting Academy in Bhopal for her achievements.