Vision of Vyavastha Parivartan ensuring honour to sportspersons: CM

Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu while presiding over the felicitation ceremony for international medal winners held in Shimla today said that the state government was committed to reward the struggles of sportspersons and foster a strong sports culture in the state. He said that honouring such players reflects the vision of the state government towards systemic change aimed at making the state self-reliant.

The Chief Minister said that the present state government has made historic increase in prize money to encourage players and inspire youth to participate in sports activities. He said that the prize money for athletes overcoming physical challenges has been increased eightfold which would ensure parity with other players. He mentioned that nowadays, when these players participate in various games at abroad, they bring great honour, laurel and pride to the state with their achievements.

The prize for gold medal winners in the Olympics, Winter Olympics and Paralympics has been raised from Rs.3 crore to Rs. 5 crore, while silver and bronze medallists would now receive Rs. 3 crore and Rs. 2 crore respectively. For the Asian Games and Para Asian Games, the prize money for gold medallists has been increased from Rs. 50 lakh to Rs. 4 crore, silver medallists from Rs. 30 lakh to Rs. 2.50 crore and bronze medallists from Rs. 20 lakh to Rs. 1.50 crore. Commonwealth Games medallists would now receive Rs. 3 crore, Rs.2 crore and Rs.1 crore for gold, silver, and bronze medals respectively.

He said that being a sportsperson he has special respect for the players and would make every possible effort to provide better facilities and sports infrastructure to the players in the state.

Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said that our government has also hiked diet money for players. Under-17 and under-19 players would now receive Rs.400 and Rs.500 per day for state and national-level competitions, respectively, compared to the earlier Rs.150 and Rs. 250. For under-14 players, the allowance has been increased to Rs. 250 and Rs. 400 from Rs.120 and Rs.250. Sportspersons in sports hostels now receive Rs.400 per day a significant rise from Rs.150. whereas the previous government has completely neglected the rights of the players and did nothing to promote the sports activities and to reward sports personalities of the state.

Apart from this, the present state government has also revised the Travel allowances, with players now entitled to AC three-tier fare for distances up to 200 km and economy-class airfare for longer distances.

The Chief Minister said that the present state government was committed to improve education, health and sports infrastructure and working continuously for making changes to bring improvement and development in these fields.

Youth Services and Sports Minister Yadvinder Goma thanked the Chief Minister for his efforts in making historic increase in the prize and diet Money of the sportspersons. He stated that Himachal Pradesh has made remarkable progress in the field of sports, achieving a level of excellence comparable to its neighbouring states like Punjab and Haryana. He also extended his heartfelt congratulations to Paralympian Nishad Kumar and other athletes from the state and commended them for their outstanding achievements and their role in inspiring the younger generation to pursue sports with dedication and determination.

Public Works Minister Vikramaditya Singh, MLA Harish Janartha, Principal Adviser to the Chief Minister (Media) Naresh Chauhan, Director of Youth Services and Sports Vivek Bhatia and other dignitaries from the sports fraternity were present on the occasion.