Vadodara:A 28-year-old girl from Gujarat's Vadodara, Shweta Parmar on Tuesday became the state's first and the country's fourth licensed civilian woman skydiver. Speaking to the media, Parmar said, "I am really very happy that I have been able to make my state and country proud. I have been receiving congratulatory messages from people and I feel that I will be able to become an inspiration for people, especially youngsters and girls." She further said, "Skydiving is an experience that cannot be replaced by any other experience. It is special and close to my heart. Now, I want to skydive without an instructor, because I feel that if I am able to enjoy skydiving with an instructor so much, doing it without an instructor would be totally different experience."
"Many adventure activities like river rafting are already taking place at the Statue of Liberty. Skydiving is an activity that can attract youth and tourists a lot. And if we talk about India, skydiving is not taking place in many places. Even if it is happening at a few places, it is not being conducted permanently. If this activity is introduced permanently at the Statue of Liberty then it can become a famous skydiving spot," she added. Padma Shri awardees Rachel Thomas, Shital Mahajan and the country's first female base jumper Archana Sardana were the only three licensed woman skydivers in the country before Parmar joined the league.