After losing three limbs in an accident, how Pooja Agarwal became a world-class para-shooter

The winter day in December 2012 turned Pooja Agarwals life upside down. She had gone to meet her husband at New Delhi railway station when a crowd pushed her from the pier to the railways.

The train ran over him, and life changed forever.

Pooja lost three limbs in a triangular amputation and was left to use only his right hand. Until then, the 27-year-old was at the best of his life, enjoying his job as a university lecturer and looking forward to an exciting future.

It was devastating, and I kept asking myself ab kya hoga (What happens now), he says HerStory in a conversation that tells of his life, which has now become a full circle.

Pooja is now a respected para-shooter who won medals for the country both nationally and internationally.

Life throws a curve

Remembering those terrible days, he says, I began to think what if my right hand had been amputated instead of my left, my fight would have been worse. So I thought of pushing myself into what I had.

Slowly, Pooja learned to use his right hand to perform small tasks, and his only idea at the time was how to get a job and become financially independent.

Her marriage was over, and all she was left with was the determination not to let fate come in the way of her dreams and ambitions. He began to study for competition tests from the hospital bed and continued his studies even after the resignation.

Soon his hard work paid off when he joined the Bank of Allahabad (now Bank of India after the merger) at the Gujranwala City Branch in June 2014.

It was difficult and challenging at the same time. The first hurdle was to restore my confidence before the accident. I’ve worked with it with the help of my colleagues and soon learned to deal with clients, he says.

The Poojas journey had just begun. Eight months later, his friend and mentor Pragya suggested he try his hand at the sport. He laughed, saying he couldn’t even work. But when he went to the Indian Spine Injury Center (ISIC) and saw people playing basketball from his wheelchair, his interest sparked.

They laughed and were happy. I started studying different sports I can practice and chose table tennis. At times, I also went to a para-athletes demonstration shooting camp, and it sounded very interesting, he adds.

Once Pooja juggled the office, table tennis and shooting. One day he fainted in the bank and was instructed to practice only one sport. He chose shooting and participated in his first competitions in preparations in 2016.

November 8, 2016, the day he returned after winning gold, will never be forgotten.

The Prime Minister announced the demonization and the situation changed overnight. As a banker, we had to put in longer hours. I also had to train for the Nationals in December, and I came home every day after midnight. Sometimes I also lost my father. It was a painful time, he says.

Pooja left for Nationals the day before the event and returned home honey.

Meeting different challenges

Despite his success, Pooja continued to shoot with a borrowed pistol. Later, Sportscraftz CEO Vipin Vig gave his sons a pistol with which he won a unique silver at the International World Cup in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates, in 2017.

He soon received funding from the bank and received his own pistol. He was successful at the Bangkok Championships, got into the Asian Games and the World Championships and won a bronze at the Croatian World Cup.

His last victory was in June 2021 at the World Cup in Lima, Peru, where he won two team silver medals.

Pooja travels 40 km from Rohin’s apartment to the Tughlaqabad shooting range in Delhi to practice. Sometimes traveling in one direction takes two to three hours.

My training depends on the schedule of my office, but I am lucky to receive support from the branch office, the regional manager, and senior management. Female employees always have a positive push, she says.

Her mother travels with her to races, but sometimes she has to skip a few because of financial issues.

Inspiration for many

Pooja constantly set up his own YouTube channel as he learned. Pooja Agarrwal PC treatments, where he sends hackers on how to do small tasks with a disability.

During the race, I folded my T-shirt with one hand. My coach saw this and wondered how I could do it so fast. It was a method I had come up with to make life easier, he talks about the idea of ​​his videos.

During the lock-up after office work and a little training, I found that I had time on my hands. My friends pushed me to start this channel. While I’m not consistent because I edit my videos, I try to post everything I can, he says.

Pooja is also on challenge, and when the viewer asked if he could post a video of chopping onions and tomatoes with one hand, he did just that.

An adventure and sports enthusiast, he has also tried rafting and diving and likes to jump and try paragliding.

People ask if I’m trying to prove something by doing all this. I can only say I want to do this, and that’s why I do it, he adds.

His goal is to make more profits as a para-shooter and bring bearings to Indian Bank and the country.

Ask him what keeps him going, and in return he will arrange a popular Hindi-language dialogue.

Hum girte bhi shark, hum rukte bhi shark, hum rote bhi shark, hum cargo bhi shark, par hum chalna Nahin chodte (We fall, we stop, we cry, we brew, but we never stop walking.)

Pooja wants to keep walking by learning all that the universe has to offer.