South Central Railway GM felicitates GS Lakshmi

Expressing his happiness that a sports person from SCR has made it to the select list at international level, the General Manager opined that this is the outcome of discipline and dedication towards the game, which takes the sports persons ahead on the path of success

Secunderabad: South Central Railway (SCR) General Manager Gajanan MaIlya felicitated GS Lakshmi, employed on the rolls of SCR, on her appointment in the ICC International Panel of Match Referees, the first women to make it to panel. Lakshmi called on the General Manager on Wednesday at SCR Headquarters, Rail Nilayam, Secunderabad.

Expressing his happiness that a sports person from SCR has made it to the select list at international level, the General Manager opined that this is the outcome of discipline and dedication towards the game, which takes the sports persons ahead on the path of success. He expressed confidence that Lakshmi will be able to perform exceedingly well in the task assigned to her and bring laurels to the nation and Indian Railways.

Lakshmi joined Railways in the year 1989 in sports quota as a cricketer and represented SCR for several years. She later went on to play for Indian Railways before making it to the Indian Women's Team which toured England in 1999.

After retiring from active cricket in 2004, she picked up the coaching assignment for the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) and Women's Cricket Team of SCR. She was also a member of HCA Women's Selection Committee, South Zone.

When the concept of women match referee was introduced by the Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) in 2008, she was one amongst the five cricketers who were on board. In 2014, she cleared the Match Referee examination conducted by BCCI. She officiated as the Match Referee in all the four matches of the recently held Vivo IPL Women T20 Challenge at Jaipur.

She has officiated as Match Manager under remote match referee Graeme LaBrooy in bilateral series of India Women vs Sri Lanka Women T20 & ODI Series; India Women vs Australia Women T20 and India 'A' Women vs Australia 'A' Women T20 Series played between 2012-2018. She has officiated as a referee in various other tourneys in the domestic circuit including the women challenger trophy matches.

Lakshmi is presently working as Chief Office Superintendent in the Public Relations Department of SCR. John Thomas, Additional General Manager; A.K.Singh, Secretary, SCR Sports Association & Secretary, Public Grievances and Ch. Rakesh, Chief Public Relations Officer, SCR were present at the felicitation.