It was raining cash rewards for star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra after his Olympic gold medal-winning feat on Saturday as an ecstatic nation couldn’t have enough of the young athlete. Haryana Chief Minister ML Khattar announced Rs six crore for the 23-year-old athlete from the state while his Punjab counterpart Amrinder Singh declared a special cash reward of Rs 2 crore.
Cash rewards have also been announced for the other medal winners and Olympians by various states. The cash-rich BCCI announced Rs one crore for Chopra and also monetary rewards for India’s other medal winners at the Tokyo Olympics Khattar said that Chopra will be made head of the upcoming Centre for Excellence in Athletics in Panchkula.
Neeraj Chopra on Saturday became only the second Indian to win individual gold and the first to get a track-and-field medal for the country in Olympics. As per our sports policy, Neeraj Chopra will get a cash reward of Rs six crore, a Class-I job and a plot of land at concessional rates, said Khattar.
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Announcing the cash reward, Chief Minister Amarinder Singh said it was a proud moment for India and all Punjabis, since the family of Neeraj Chopra, a serving soldier of the Indian Army, traces its roots to Punjab. Khattar declared that indoor wrestling stadiums will be built in the native village of wrestlers Ravi Dahiya and Bajrang Punia in Sonipat and Jhajjar districts, respectively.
For his bronze medal-winning effort, as per the state’s sports policy, Punia will get a cash reward of Rs 2.5 crore, a plot at concessional rates and a state government job. Ravi Dahiya, who became the second Indian wrestler to win a silver medal at the Olympics, will get Rs 4 crore award money, a Class-I job and a piece of land of Haryana Shahari Vikas Pradhikaran at concessional rates.
The Haryana government will also honour the nine women’s hockey players of the state with a cash reward of Rs 50 lakh each while an equal amount would be given to each sportsperson of the state who stood at the fourth position in any event in the Olympics. In a tweet, BCCI secretary Jay Shah also announced that Rs 50 lakh each will be given to silver medallists — Mirabai Chanu and Ravi Dahiya.
Mirabai Chanu won India’s first weightlifting medal at the Games and Ravi Dahiya became only the second wrestler from the country to win a silver medal after Sushil Kumar (2012). The bronze medallists — wrestler Bajrang Punia, boxer Lovlina Borgohain and shuttler P V Sindhu — will get Rs 25 lakh each.
The men’s hockey team which won its first Olympic medal in 41 years will get Rs 1.25 crore. Several private enterprises too announced cash rewards and other incentives for the players.
IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings announced a Rs one crore reward for Chopra. “As a mark of appreciation and honour on his stellar achievement, CSK is awarding Rs. 1 Crore to Neeraj Chopra," said CSK in a statement.
“CSK will be creating a special jersey with the number 8758 as a mark of respect to Neeraj Chopra," it added. Gurugram-based realty firm Elan group Chairman Rakesh Kapoor announced a Rs 25 lakh cash award for Neeraj Chopra, while IndiGo offered unlimited free travel for one year to him.
Chopra produced a second-round throw of 87.58m in the finals to stun the athletics world and end India’s 100-year wait for a track and field medal in the Olympics. Hailing from Khandra village in Panipat district, he joined shooter Abhinav Bindra (2008 Beijing Games) as India’s individual gold winners in the showpiece. It is a big achievement for the country our athletes have made us proud. People of Haryana and the country are happy today at the feat of our sportspersons, Khattar said.
Chanu was handed over a cheque Rs 1 crore and an appointment letter to the post of Additional Superintendent of Police (Sports) by the Manipur government after she won the first medal for the country in the Tokyo Olympics. Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami had earlier announced a cash reward of Rs 25 lakh to Indian women’s hockey team member Vandana Katariya, while the Jharkhand government has said it will provide Rs 50 lakh each to Salima Tete and Nikki Pradhan, hailing from the state.
The Mizoram government has offered a government job and a plot of land to the state’s woman hockey star Lalremsiami, besides a cash reward of Rs 25 lakh. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had announced a reward of Rs one crore each for hockey players Vivek Sagar and Nilakanta Sharma.
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