The unjustifiable delay on the part of the Kerala Government in announcing a cash reward for P R Sreejesh, goalkeeper of the Indian hockey team that won bronze-medal at the recently concluded Tokyo Olympics, has set off a storm of protest from several quarters, especially on social media platforms.
Five days have passed since the Indian hockey team beat Germany in the bronze play-off to earn its first Olympic medal in 41 years, but the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) Government, led by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, has been conspicuously silent on honouring Sreejesh with cash incentives despite his heroics at the Olympics. Notably, the 33-year-old hailing from Pallikkara in Ernakulam district is an employee of the Department of General and Higher Education.
How other States feted its heroes
While States like Punjab and Haryana have offered government jobs, promotions and heavy cash prizes to Olympic medal winners from their state, the general feeling is that the Kerala government has let down Sreejesh, who is only the second Keralite after Manuel Fredericks to clinch a medal at the quadrennial event.
The Haryana Government has announced a cash reward of Rs 6 crore for Neeraj Chopra, who won the historic gold medal in men’s javelin throw. The Punjab government, meanwhile, announced that it will give a cash award of Rs 1 crore to each of the state hockey players, who were part of the bronze medal-winning team. It has also announced a cash prize for Chopra.
The Madhya Pradesh Government has also decided to give Rs 1 crore to hockey stars Vivek Sagar and Nilkanta Sharma, alumni of the Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy, and Rs 31 lakh each to members of the women's hockey team which finished fourth.
Following her historic silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics, weight-lifter Saikhom Mirabai Chanu will soon be appointed as the Additional Superintendent of Police (Sports) by the Manipur Government. In addition to the post, Chanu would also be rewarded with Rs 1 crore as announced by the State Government.
While the Kerala Government chose to ignore Sreejesh's achievements, Dr. Shamsheer Vayalil, chairman and MD of the UAE-based VPS Healthcare, has announced a cash prize of Rs 1 crore for him as a token of appreciation. He will be presented with the cash award at a function to be held in Kochi, said a release.
"Sreejesh, who made Kerala proud, deserves a better treatment. The State Government should not have wasted even a day in honouring him for all the hard work that he has put in over the years. The government still has time to make amends. Also, measures should be initiated to set up a fund to receive donations from the general public in order to honour Neeraj Chopra, who won India's first Olympic gold medal in athletics," said former Olympian T C Yohannan.
Veteran volleyball player and Arjuna awardee Tom Joseph also came down heavily on the Kerala Government for the shoddy treatment of sportspersons. "I think the authorities concerned have failed to gauge the enormity of Sreejesh's achievement. The shabby treatment of an Olympic medal winner gives a clear picture of the sorry state of affairs of sports in Kerala. No wonder the Indian Olympic contingent was without a Malayali woman sportsperson this time around," he said.
State reception to Sreejesh on arrival
Meanwhile, Sreejesh is scheduled to reach Kochi on Tuesday evening. The hockey players were among the Indian contingent who arrived in New Delhi from Tokyo on Monday.
Sreejesh will be accorded a warm reception at the Cochin International Airport around 5 pm. Sports Minister V. Abdurahiman and office-bearers of the Olympic Association, Kerala Hockey, and the Kerala State Sports Council will be present at the airport to receive him.