Someswara Rao, an army officer who lost his leg in a fatal landmine blast at Uri will be one of India’s two Blade Jumpers, who has qualified for the upcoming Para Asian Games. Rao’s story is an inspiring tale. After losing his leg, he even tried to kill himself. However he found a new purpose in life and is all set to represent the country in an international sporting event.

Someswara Rao joined the army way back in 2011. He was appointed to the 11 Madras Regiment. It was in 2013 that his life changed completely. He accompanied a team of soliders in Uri following a landmine explosion. They were sent to inspect the situation.

In an interview with Indian Express, he recalled the fateful day. “That night nothing happened. But the next morning we were getting back to the trench and I stepped on a landmine.” Rao lost his left leg below the knee and he was shattered.

After the incident, Someswara Rao’s leg had to be amputated. With just one leg, the ex-armyman was struggling with the trauma. Despite undergoing treatment, he was unable to deal with the fact that he has lost one leg.

The depressed youngster was completely down that the thought of ending his life flashed his mind. He proceeded with the thought and hopped all the way to the bathroom with a blade in hand to commit suicide.

Second before he was about to kill himself, he got a chance phone call from his mother. It saved his life. “When I heard my mom’s voice, I started weeping and then fell unconscious. For the next 10 days, I was in and out of ICU,” he said.

Someswara Rao was recovering from the traumatic experience, but still the though of losing his leg continued to haunt him. That was when he had a chance encounter with Lt Colonel Gaurav Dutta. Dutta was an army para-athlete and Rao met him at the Artificial Limb Centre in Pune.

Inspired by him, Rao got a new purpose and direction in his life. He decided to pursue track and field sports. Dutta established the Army’s Paralympics Node (APN) in 2017 in which supported the training of para-athletes within the Indian Army. 

Soon Rao began training and dedicated his time in honing the skills. His efforts paid off as he went on to become a national para-athlete and won numerous medals in International Grand Prix events.

He later switched to long jump and will now represent India in the Para Asian Games. The tournament at Huangzhu will be held from 22nd to 28th October this year.