Open water swimming in chilka lake – an extraordinary feat by jiya rai. Miss Jiya Rai, the 14 years old daughter of Indian Navy’s Madan Rai, Master Chief-At-Arms II, swam 21 km in 03 hours and 57 minutes in Chilka Lake, Odisha on 13 November 2022. The event was organised by INS Chilka and the Veterans Clubs Odisha (VCO). It was flagged off by Commodore NP Pradeep, Naval Officer-in-Charge (Odisha) from Krishanaprasad Garh and finished at Balugaon Jetty. The event was aimed at creating awareness on the importance of the Chilka Lake, protecting migratory birds and commemorating the rich maritime history of the state of Odisha. It witnessed wide participation. Around 750 students along with teachers and professors from various universities of Odisha were present for the longest swimming event in the Chilka Lake and were highly appreciative of the swimmer.
Shri Tushar Kanti Behera, Hon’ble Minister of Youth & Sports and Home of Odisha, along with Commodore NP Pradeep, felicitated Miss Rai, recipient of the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Purashkar-2022, at Balugaon Jetty. Shri K Sudarshan Chakraborty, IAS, DM Khurda, was also present and applauded Miss Rai’s efforts.
Miss Rai is an International Open Water Para Swimmer and has brought laurels to India by swimming across the Palk Strait, from Talaimannar (Srilanka) to Dhanuskodi (India), a distance of 29 Km, in 13 h and 10 m on 20 March 2022. She achieved this feat at the age of 13 years and 10 months to become the world’s youngest and fastest female swimmer to swim across the Strait.
