Para shuttler faces mental agony, financial hardship due to official blunder by Badminton Association of India

Add as a preferred source on Google

A goof-up by the Badminton Association of India (BAI) has cost Rajasthan's 20-year-old para-badminton player mental agony as well as financial hardship.

Pranay Seth, who is competing in the SL4 singles category, was shocked to learn on his arrival on September 16 in Indonesia that despite paying the entry fee on August 29, BAI failed to send his entry for the Indonesia Para Badminton International 2024, which had valuable world ranking points.

The six-member Indian team, including Pranay, was cleared by BAI at no cost to the government for the September 17 to 22 para badminton tournament in Indonesia's Solo City.

"After making all necessary arrangements, including payments for entry, hotel accommodation, visa, and flight for the recent tournament in Indonesia, I was informed late in the evening on September 16, 2024, after my arrival in Solo City, Indonesia - just one day before the event - that my entry had not been processed by the BAI," the para badminton player wrote in his email to BAI.

Upset over the missed opportunity for no fault of his own, the Jaipur-based para badminton player has also marked an email to the Sports Authority of India (SAI). He has also requested BAI to compensate for the expenditure.

"I kindly request BAI to fully investigate this matter and provide compensation for the expenses (total Rs 1,06,501) I have incurred. I belong to a very poor family and such a huge amount will impact a lot on my life," Pranay said in his communication to BAI.

K Prabhakar Rao, chairman of Para Badminton, wasn't available for his comments. The BAI, as learnt by the website, has assured Pranay to compensate for the total expenditure involved during his tour to Indonesia, but he is yet to get the due amount.

When reached out for his comments on Saturday, Pranay said he was yet to get the amount. However, a day later, he sent a WhatsApp message saying the matter had been resolved.

Hailing from a village near Dungarpur in Southern Rajasthan, the para badminton player had his right leg amputated below the knee. He has been playing badminton for the past four years. Ample support from his parents and two elder sisters enabled him to gradually move up the ladder in his respective category.

Pranay won bronze at the 2023 National Para Badminton Championship in his category (SL4). However, in the 2024 edition, he lost in the quarters. His bronze medal performance attracted sponsors last year, which has further fueled his passion to improve his global ranking.

The third-year college student stays in Jaipur, which has facilities to play badminton. His first international match was in Thailand last year. His next target is a top-10 world ranking, which will give him more opportunities to compete and get more funding.

No one in his family has a sports background but he had a passion for badminton and started playing when he was in Class 11. In 2021, he came to know that there are facilities for para badminton players, which further encouraged him to work hard.