Olympic medalists PV Sindhu and Sakshi Malik were conferred with the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award by President Pranab Mukherjee while 15 athletes were honoured with the Arjuna Award. Along with the shuttler and the wrestler who fetched silver and bronze respectively, gymnast Dipa Karmakar and pistol shooter Jitu Rai were awarded the country’s highest sporting honour for their sterling performance in the 2016 Rio Olympic Games. The award carries a statuette, citation and cash prize of Rs.7.5 lakh each.
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Steeplechase runner Lalita Babar and shooter Apurvi Chandela were among those who received the Arjuna Award. Vinesh Phogat, recovering from a torn ligament, was also part of the list. Mahabir Phogat and Bishweshwar Nandi were two of the six Dhronacharya Awardees.
Arjuna, Dronacharya, and Dhyan Chand Awardees will receive statuettes, certificates and cash prize of Rs 5 lakh each.
Here's the full list:
Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ranta 2016: PV Sindhu (badminton), Dipa Karmakar (gymnastics), Jitu Rai (shooting) and Sakshi Malik (wrestling).
Dronacharya Awards 2016: Nagapuri Ramesh (athletics), Sagar Mal Dhayal (boxing), Raj Kumar Sharma (cricket), Bishweshwar Nandi (gymnastics), S Pradeep Kumar (swimming, lifetime) and Mahabir Singh (wrestling, lifetime)
Arjuna Awards 2016: Rajat Chauhan (archery), Lalita Babar (athletics), Sourav Kothari (billiards and snooker), Shiva Thapa (boxing), Ajinkya Rahane (cricket), Subrata Paul (football), Rani (hockey), VR Raghunath (hockey), Gurpreet Singh (shooting), Apurvi Chandela (shooting), Soumyajit Ghosh (table tennis), Vinesh (wrestling), Amit Kumar (wrestling), Sandeep Singh Mann (para-athletics), Virender Singh (wrestling, deaf).
Dhyan Chand Award: Satti Geetha (athletics), Sylvanus Dung Dung (hockey), Rajendra Pralhad Shelke (rowing).
