Sky divers leave sleepy Deesa wide-eyed

Palanpur, Feb 11 (UNI) Deesa, a sleepy town near Palanpur in Banaskantha district of Gujarat, was abuzz today as it played host to sky-divers from across the state and even elsewhere from the country.

A two-day sky diving programme was jointly sponsored by Sports Authority of Gujarat (SAG), the Indian Parachute Federation (IPF), and the Aero Club of India. However, the programme, which was scheduled to start yesterday, could not get off because of bad weather. Today, the skies cleared and 18 participants, six of them women, took part in sky diving.

''Though Deesa is a small town, it is the only town in the country where civilians can enjoy sky diving,'' SAG director general Atul Karwal said on the occasion.

Puja Sharma from Ahmedabad, who experienced the thrill of sky diving for the first time, landed successfully from a height of 4000 feet.''Really it was a memorable moment. I am unable to describe the joy,'' she gushed.

For Bharat Ramji Bhai Kamaliya, it was a journey from water to air. A fisherman from Diu, Bharat said, ''I have always been associated with water, and I wanted to experience the thrill in the air. It was a memorable occasion. I fulfilled my long-time desire.'' Ronak Bhagadiya had come from Bangalore for the event. ''When I dived, I experienced a strange floating feeling. In the beginning, I was a bit hesitant. When the parachute opened, I was floating like a bird. It was green every where. I wish I could dive many more times,'' she said.

IPF president Sanjay Thapa emphasised, ''We prepare the participants three days before the programme. Only after being fully satisfied about the participant's abilities, do we allow them for the final air drop.'' ''Risk is always there in any adventure sports, but every measure is taken to prevent a mishap ...... We try to minimise the risk,'' SAG liaison officer B B Patil said. He informed that participants are charged at a rate of Rs 12,500 for a single jump, while the amount charged for five jumps is Rs 50000.

UNI