Paralympic gold medalist to be part of MSU's Prerna 2024

VADODARA: As budding engineers of M S University's Faculty of Technology and Engineering are gearing up to host Prerna 2024, Asia's largest fest for the disabled, India's first Paralympic gold medallist Murlikant Petkar and internationally recognized drummer Saurabh Gadhavi have given their consent to be part of the event.
The two-day fest is scheduled for Sep 21-22.
"Alfaaz is a motivational talk show where the differently-abled dignitaries are invited so they can share their struggles and experiences to inspire all the participants," said student volunteer Parth Varia.
Petkar, who won an individual gold medal in the 1972 Summer Paralympics in Heidelberg, Germany, set a world record in the 50m freestyle swimming event with a timing of 37.33 secs. In the same games, he participated in javelin, precision javelin throw, and slalom. He was a finalist in all three events. In 2018, he was awarded the Padma Shri.
Gadhavi is famous for his unique style of playing drums. He started his drumming career when he was just 10 years old. He did his first international tour in Manchester in 2019 with his band. He has also received the self-employed differently-abled artist award by the Gujarat govt.
Another dignitary, Sameer Kakkad, is a record holder in the Limca Book of Records, the India Book of Records, and the Unique World. In 2019, he became the first differently-abled international driving licence holder.
In 2007, he was awarded the best entrepreneur of the year award by the then President Ram Nath Kovind.