Commonwealth Games 2018: Sakshi Malik and 12 other medallists not to be felicitated by Haryana government because of new rule

What’s the story?

After the Indian contingent finished the 2018 Commonwealth Games season on a positive note, placed third on the overall medal tally ladder, the Haryana government has conveniently passed a new rule that denies the athletes from Haryana to be paid in full by the state government.

In case you didn’t know…

All gold medallists are supposed to be awarded a cash prize of Rs. 1.5 crore, silver medal winners a prize worth Rs. 75 lakh, and bronze medallists Rs. 50 lakh. The Haryana government had announced a couple of days ago that they will be honouring all 22 medal winners who represented the nation at the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia between April 4th and 15th. The athletes were to be felicitated and handed over their respective award money at a programme to be held on the 26th of this month.

Chief Minister, Manohar Lal Khattar described Haryana to be a sports hub and promised a cash prize to be rewarded to the medallists. In addition to the prize money, the players are assigned roles in the Haryana Civil and Police services.

The heart of the matter

As per the new rule that has been passed by the government of Haryana, the players who work outside the state will not be honoured for their feats. Under this new law, a cash prize of Rs. 7 lakh will be presented to the participating players.

Having been working in the Central Government, wrestler Sakshi Malik addressed the media and revealed that the athletes who had been working for the Central Government never received any job opportunity from the Haryana government.

The CWG Bronze medal winner disclosed, “Till date, it has not happened that someone is working as an employee in the state government. We are from Haryana and we want to work in Haryana. After the Olympics, the Haryana government had offered us to work for the state, on which the discussion is still going on,”

“I am presently doing a job under the Central government and it is not like I am working for some other state,” Malik added.

What's next?

A response on this matter from the authorities of the Haryana government is much awaited.

Author’s take

This new rule that has been set by the government of Haryana has come at a supremely convenient point in time for the state. Just when they had to honour the athletes who did the entire country proud in Australia, the government decided to spoil the party. The list of unpaid players and coaches is one that unfortunately has a rich history in our country, and this is one issue that must be addressed and resolved at the earliest. These athletes work hard all year long and give their best to ensure that India is at par along with other nations from all over the world. Their efforts must be rewarded as they have earned every penny of it.