A Mumbai-based NGO has successfully tapped the power of the social media to raise funds to help Sahana Kumari ... Read More

BANGALORE: A Mumbai-based NGO has successfully tapped the power of the social media to raise funds to help high jumper Sahana Kumari so that her Russian coach Evgeny Nikitin could accompany her to the London Olympics .

Sahana Kumari, a resident of Kotekar village in Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka, is the first high jumper after Bobby Aloysius to qualify for the Olympics.

"We came to know about her plight through one of the trustees of the Anandashram school in Mangalore where Sahana studied. It was the father-son duo of Mahesh-Vikram Bondal who brought this matter to our notice," Jaymin Panchal, a founding member of NGO Ek Aur Prayas told STOI.

The NGO began 'Project High Jump for Olympics' through their website, facebook and twitter on July 13 and managed to raise few lakhs in just a few days. "The financial part of the campaign is closed now. We have raised the few lakhs required for the coach's trip to London. The Karnataka government's gesture of awarding Rs 5 lakh also helped," Panchal said.

The NGO published the Canara Bank account number of Sahana on their website and asked well-wishers to directly make contributions. "Some of the people contributed through us but there must be other donors who must have directly transferred the money into her account," he said.

Panchal said the focus is now on getting her the right equipment and processing the visas. "The Athletics Federation of India ( AFI ) told her on July 19 that she has to get the UK visa on her own. She has been running around since then. Even now she hasn't got the visa," he said.

"Ek Aur Prayas conveys its heartiest thank you to all especially the Karnataka government and ND Agarwal for their substantial contributions, along with various individual donors who across the demographic borders came forward and made this campaign, to financially support Sahana, a great success," the NGO said in a new post on its website.

The entire statement of accounts on donations received and the expenses will be uploaded on the website once Sahana returns from Olympics, the NGO added.

"It is the first time we are taking up a project to help a sportsperson and I am happy we have succeeded," said Panchal, who along with Anil Kohli, are running the NGO.

