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Hamedi Khatoon (right) with her trophy. (Anindya Shankar Ray)
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They are visually impaired but that did not stop them showing the way to the sighted. The 4th Car Rally for the Blind presented by Round Table India in association with National Association for the Blind (West Bengal chapter) and The Telegraph had 45 participants taking part in a 60km race on Sunday.
The participants were a mix of the young and the old, not just in age but in experience as well. While Basudeb Sarkar, 18, was apprehensive about his debut, Saraswati Patra, a 42-year-old homemaker from Panihati, was taking it easy. Twelve years of experience had taught her to keep her cool in rallies.
What was common were their tales of inspiration. For Pankaj Kumar Gaddyham from Dhanbad, it was his teacher who first egged him on to join a rally in Delhi. “I was in Class IX then. Several years have passed since then. For me, it is not about winning, but taking part and completing the rally,” said Pankaj.
Saraswati felt it was a sense of deprivation that drove her. “I feel proud and happy that after all her house work, my mother not only participates in car rallies but also wins a number of times,” said Nilmoni Patra, the proud son who was there to cheer his mother in spite of his Class X exams going on.
For Hamedi Khatoon, a Class XI student at Lighthouse for the Blind, participating in the rally has been a dream come true. The 18-year-old won in the women’s amateur category.
Time, speed and distance were taken into account to judge the winners. Co-ordination between the sighted driver and the visually impaired navigator was of utmost importance, said Debarati Chanda, the winner in the women’s expert category. “In car rallies for the blind, I am blind-folded. We see the route through the eyes of a visually impaired person,” said Chanda, whose navigator was Sabati Jakhotia.
“We aim to make visually impaired people feel special and point out their importance in life. We started off with just 27 participants and now the rally is a national event,” said Praveen Kanodia, the chairman of Round Table No. 41.
“In a car rally for the blind, the control lies with the navigator. This gives them a sense of importance and confidence,” said Kanchan Gaba, the secretary of National Association for the Blind.
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