HIGHLIGHTS:
• Two poor kids from the city have been officially accepted into the Indian Navy as sailors
• After a term with YCH, Erra Durga Prasad (20) and Gowtham Kankatla (21) from the Rasoolpura slum realized their ambitions.
• Prasad and Gowtham obtained their first official posting in Mumbai after completing their training in Odisha.
Realizing the ambition
The Yacht Club of Hyderabad (YCH) has added another feather to its cap, as two economically disadvantaged kids from the city have been officially accepted into the Indian Navy as sailors. After a term with YCH, Erra Durga Prasad (20) and Gowtham Kankatla (21) from the Rasoolpura slum realized their ambitions.
Their Background
Prasad’s father, Lingam, works as a photocopier, and his mother works as a sweeper at a motorcycle dealership. Vijayalakshmi, Gowtham’s mother, was subjected to the wrath of her violent and drunken husband. After her husband died of liver cirrhosis in 2007, she took whatever odd jobs she could to provide for her family.
In the early phases of sailing with the yacht club, Prasad and Gowtham struggled to adjust. During Prasad’s first try at Pawna Lake in Maharashtra, a storm overturned his boat, requiring lifeguards to rescue him. Prasad won a bronze medal at the India International Regatta in 2017, propelling him to the top of the Indian junior rankings.
Winning first gold medal
In 2016, Prasad applied for the Navy’s junior fleet and was accepted. In 2021, he finally joined his senior fleet. In Hussainsagar, Gowtham fought to keep his feet firmly on the boat. In 2016, he won his first national gold medal after a lot of hard work.
Their first official posting
When Gowtham demanded to participate in water sports, Vijayalakshmi didn’t hold out much hope, but she eventually gave in. Gowtham joined YCH when he was ten years old. “Because he was a child, I had never agreed to his desire first. He approached me and said he wanted to do some dangerous & risky stuffs in the water. We didn’t think he’d be able to go through. However, Gowtham astounded us all “.said
Vijayalakshmi
Prasad and Gowtham obtained their first official posting in Mumbai after completing their training in Odisha.
