Chandigarh admn awards ₹10.18-crore scholarships to 2,394 athletes
Chandigarh administrator Gulab Chand Kataria said that the budget for the Khelo India Programme has been tripled to provide better facilities and resources for athletes across the country
The Chandigarh administration has awarded scholarships worth ₹10.18 crore to 2,394 local sportspersons under its new sports policy.
The scholarship distribution ceremony was held at Post Graduate Government College for Girls, Sector 42, Chandigarh, where UT administrator and Punjab governor Gulab Chand Kataria presented the awards.
Addressing the gathering, Kataria said that promoting sports is a priority for the administration and keeping this objective in mind, the new sports policy was implemented in August 2023. The new policy has increased the scholarship amounts for players across various categories.
Under the revised policy, gold medallists in under-23 category will receive ₹60,000, silver medallists ₹54,000 and bronze medallists ₹48,000.
In the under-19 category, gold medallists will be awarded ₹48,000, silver medallists ₹42,000 and bronze medallists ₹36,000.
In the under-14 category, the scholarship amount has been fixed at ₹36,000 for gold medallists, ₹30,000 for silver medallists and ₹24,000 for bronze medallists.
Kataria also said that the budget for the Khelo India Programme has been tripled to provide better facilities and resources for athletes across the country. He praised Chandigarh’s sporting legacy, recalling the achievements of Olympic gold medallists Abhinav Bindra, cricket legend Kapil Dev and several international hockey players who have brought laurels to the city.
“Every player has immense potential and with discipline, hard work and the right guidance, success is inevitable,” Kataria added.