Haryana Govt Revises Winners’ Cash Prize, Manu Bhaker’s Kin Fume

First the government promises Rs 2 crore, and now revises it to Rs 1 crore, yet nothing has reached Manu Bhaker yet.

First, the government promises Rs 2 crore, and now revises it to Rs 1 crore, yet nothing has reached Manu Bhaker till date.

(Photo: Kamran Akhter/The Quint)

Three months after she won the coveted gold at the Youth Olympics, Bhaker continues to await the Rs 2 crore promised to her as reward by the Haryana state government.

On 4 January, a miffed Manu Bhaker's tweet read:

Bhaker had clinched the gold in the 10m air pistol event in the Youth Olympics held in Argentina's Buenos Aires in October, entering the record books as India's first-ever gold medallist in shooting at the competition.

Minutes after her victory, Haryana Sports Minister Anil Vij had tweeted promising a sum of Rs 2 crore as cash prize from the state government.

In fact, after congratulating Bhaker on her victory, Vij had said that the shooter would receive Rs 2 crore in place of the usual Rs 10 lakh that was awarded to sportspersons for their victories in international competitions.

Haryana Govt Revises Cash Prize Award From Rs 2 Cr to Rs 1 Cr

Speaking to The Quint, Bhaker's father Ramkishan Bhaker elaborated on the reason behind his daughter's apparent displeasure.

On 7 September, much before Bhaker secured the gold, the Haryana government put out a notification, announcing a revision in the cash awards that would be awarded to sportspersons in individual events.

Under this notification, it was clearly stated that the earlier cash award of Rs 10 lakh will now be hiked to Rs 2 crore for those who manage to secure gold at the Youth Olympics.

On 27 December, the government revised this amount to Rs 1 crore, without mentioning the earlier Rs 2 crore standard. Instead, the new policy lists the revised amount as Rs 1 crore from Rs 10,00,000.

Amidst this revision of award money, Bhaker remains bereft of her promised sum.

“If you promised us Rs 2 crore, then deliver that. If you can’t, then apologise for it. Don’t insult your sportspersons by changing your policies randomly without any notice. If you cannot deliver on a promise, then don’t make it. Don’t politicise the issue.”

Ramkishan Bhaker, Manu’s father

Meanwhile, the revision for Youth Olympics winners under the government's new policy, named “Catch them young" policy, has been reported to be a “substantial increase” by local newspapers, from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 1 crore.