SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, Nov 19: Archi Gupta, an ace shooter of the state and BBM College Baliapur student while performing as per her reputation bagged the gold medal in the Binod Bihari Mahto Koylanchal University (BBMKU) inter-college shooting championship held at Bokaro Steel City College, Bokaro.
In the Air Riffle event, Archi set a new record in the BBMKU championship. Her success is significant as she belongs to a rural institution BBM College Baliapur, leaving students of all city-based colleges in Dhanbad and Bokaro behind.
Archi shot into the limelight in 2018 when she participated in the state shooting championship for the first time and bagged the gold medal in the 400m rifle event. She maintained her supremacy in the state championship by winning gold in 2019 and 2020 consecutively.
In the pre-national championship in 2022 held at Asansol (West Bengal) in September, Archi made another record with 383 points in her event and qualified for the National Shooting Championship which is to be held at Meerut (Uttar Pradesh) from February 15, 2023.
Archi started her shooting practice in 2018 when she was a class IX student at St. Xavier’s School Dhanbad. Having seen potential in her, the games teacher of school Satyam Roy guided and encouraged her to participate in the state championship. In her first appearance, she hogged the limelight by winning the gold medal.
With full support and encouragement from her family, especially her father Narendra Narayan Gupta, Archi is set for her training at Gun for Glory Shooting Institute in Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh).
Buoyed by Archi’s achievement, BBM College principal Dr PC Mandal felicitated her in the institution. Senior professors Dr VK Yadav, Puja Verma AP Bhandari, Sunil Kumar Mahto, Panchu Mahto Vikash Bauri, W Mahto and Tara Devi, wife of Sindri MLA Indrajit Mahto, congratulated her for her outstanding success.
