Physically challenged but not the one to wail

An unexpected event ruptured the body of this young man. It sent him towards the brink of death. He got up from among the corpses and returned to his parents. The parents have exhausted all their money and assets in the process of saving him. The young man was left with nothing but tears. He contemplated suicide but to no avail. The young man set out to find the purpose of this life that God has gifted him. He challenged destiny and courageously moved ahead. In the journey towards reinventing himself, he stood as an inspiration to many. This is the story of Shekhar, who is excelling as a blade runner, cyclist, mountaineer and sportsman.

Yadadri:Chidugulla Shekhar Goud hails from Peepalpahad village, Yadadri district of Telangana. On the outside, Shekhar seems like just another person with a physical disability. But, his heart is full of self-confidence and determination. Even the mountains bow down to his grit. Highways cannot match his speed. While perfectly abled people find it difficult to master a sport, Shekhar has achieved success despite his physical impairment. He participated in 66 running events and 14 marathons. He took part in a cycling competition from Kanyakumari to Khardung La, which was 68 days and 4,100 km long. He ascended Mt Everest, Mt Kilimanjaro and Mt Elbrus.

But what is the reason behind his physical disability? What was that event which turned around his life? After completing his schooling, Shekhar joined government college in Nalgonda. One day while talking to his friend, he accidentally slipped from the wall. While falling, he caught hold of the electric wires for support. He couldn’t remember anything after that. The next day, he found himself among the dead bodies in the mortuary of Nalgonda government hospital.

Shekhar’s body was full of bruises and he was heavily bleeding. People started running away on seeing him get up. A ward boy gave him 50 rupees and communicated the incident to his parents. They came and took Shekhar to a private hospital. The doctors said that his limbs have to be removed due to severe injury from electric shock. They amputated his right arm and left leg. He underwent 15 surgeries. Shekhar’s father sold off his farmlands and spent 18 lakhs on his treatment. Shekhar was confined to bed for 6 months after the surgery.

Relatives who got to know of his situation were filled with sympathy but nobody supported him. The pain of being crippled depressed him. He tried committing suicide too. But he realised that death is not in his favour. He wanted to be among people like everyone else. He started working in a friend’s cellphone shop. Later, he set up his cellphone repair shop on Vijayawada highway. But his shop was demolished during a road expansion work. He lost all his money.

At this time, a phone call changed his life. It was a call for Airtel marathon in Hyderabad. He was unaware of that term till then. After entering the Gachibowli stadium in Hyderabad, he was shocked to see many handicapped people like him. He started running with the Jaipur Foot. Observing his enthusiasm, the founder of Dakshin Rehabilitation, Dr Mohana Gandhi, fixed a sophisticated artificial leg in its place. This has instilled new hopes in Shekhar. He completed 14 marathons with that artificial limb. He participated in cycling competitions. He excelled in trekking, badminton and swimming.

After taking up marathon and cycling, Shekhar started getting interested in mountaineering. Though it’s a costly hobby and needed extensive training, Shekhar didn’t back off. He set himself a target of conquering the seven summits in the world. Under the guidance of Ravi Srivastava, he started trekking Moula-ali and Keesaragutta hills.

In 2018, he reached the Everest base camp in 14 days. He felt confident about his trekking skills after making it to the base camp. In August 2019, he climbed the Mt Elbrus in 17 hours at a freezing temperature of –35*C. Through these achievements, Shekhar wants to inspire the people around him. He is urging people to accept him as one among them.

He is optimistic about conquering the remaining summits if the government assists him. He is awaiting donors for his future pursuits. While pursuing his passion for mountaineering, Shekhar is simultaneously working as a record assistant at a private hospital in Hyderabad.