Sports equipment gifted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi by India’s Olympians and Paralympians after their 2020 Tokyo campaign are among the things that are attracting the highest bids in an e-auction by the Culture Ministry.
Javelins of Neeraj Chopra, Sumit Antil, PV Sindhu’s badminton racket and Lovlina Borgohain’s boxing gloves (Rs 1,92,00,000) are among the items that have attracted the highest bids. By the morning of 18 September, Neeraj’s javelin had attracted a bid of Rs 10 crore. Sumit’s javelin had drawn a bid of Rs 3 crore while a hockey stick presented by the women’s hockey team with the team members signatures had drawn a bid of Rs 1,00,00,500.
Neeraj was India’s only Gold medallist at the Tokyo Olympics. The Indian women’s hockey team had finished fourth in the Olympics while the men’s team won a Bronze medal, ending a wait of more than 40 years.
Badminton rackets of Paralympians Krishna Nagar and S L Yathiraj and the fence used by CA Bhavani Devi at the Olympics had all received bids of Rs 10 crore during the day.
However, in the evening when the bids were reviewed, they were found to be fake.
Devi is the first Indian fencer to ever qualify for the Tokyo Olympics.
The auction began on Friday, Prime Minister Modi's birthday.
The javelin used by Neeraj Chopra in the Tokyo Olympic Games is among the items with the highest base price at Rs 1 crore.
The lowest priced item is a small-sized decorative elephant for Rs 200.
The proceeds from the e-auction have been earmarked for the Namami Gange Mission which is expected to help conserve and rejuvenate the Ganga River.
Any individual or an organisations can participate through the website pmmementos.gov.in between 17 September 17 and 7 October. Once the e-auction is completed, the ministry will get in touch with the highest bidders.
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