Golden girl Mallika Handa to get National Youth Award

Avneet Kaur

Jalandhar, January 10

Mallika Handa, a city-based speech and hearing-impaired chess champion, who has won several medals in the national and international championships, has added another feather to her cap as she has been selected by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports for the National Youth Awards 2019-20.

Ignored by state government

With 90 per cent hearing disability, my daughter has won many national and international championships in chess. It is really disappointing that the state government is paying no attention towards her. Renu Handa, Mallika’s mother

Mallika will receive the award on January 16 at Hubballi in Karnataka. She is one of the 19 youngsters, who have been selected for the award from across the country. The award is being presented to these youngsters for their outstanding services to the community and achieving great heights in their respective fields.

Renu Handa, mother of Mallika, speaking to the Jalandhar Tribune, said, “It is a proud moment for me as it’s the second time my daughter is receiving a national-level award.” She said she had earlier received the National Disability Award in 2019 from the Central Government in the best sportsperson with disability category.

Divulging details of her daughter’s achievement, she said her daughter was the first Indian girl to win gold in the International Deaf and Dumb Chess Championship. Besides, she was an eight-time gold medallist of the National Chess Championship for the Deaf and had won a silver medal in the International Chess Committee of the Deaf (ICCD) worldwide World Deaf Blitz Chess Championship.

She said while the Centre had always honoured Mallika for her achievements, the state government continued to ignore her. “I have been repeatedly requesting the officials of Punjab Sports Department to give my daughter a respectable job, but to no avail. Former CM Charanjit Singh Channi promised that Mallika would be given a government job and asked us to submit her documents, however, nothing happened after that”, she added.

She further said all her daughter had achieved so far was on her own and the state government had never given any scholarship or financial aid to her. “With 90 per cent hearing disability, my daughter has won many national and international championships in chess. It is really disappointing that the state government is paying no attention towards her achievement and the honour she brought for Punjab,” Renu Handa said, adding they had high hopes from the new government, and expected that the CM would recognise her achievements.

Bag full of medals

• City-based Mallika Handa is the first Indian girl to win gold in the International Deaf and Dumb Chess Championship
• She is an eight-time gold medallist of the National Chess Championship for the Deaf. She has also won a silver medal in the International Chess Committee of the Deaf