Crores for Games, but no cash for some shooters
In a sad commentary on the manner in which the country’s sportspersons are treated, a Lok Sabha MP complained in the House that 15 players who went to participate in the World Shooting Championship in Munich recently had to foot their travel bills.
It was at these championships that Tejaswini Sawant became the first Indian woman to win the gold medal in the 50-metre rifle event.
BJP MP Sumitra Mahajan raised the issue of players being left in the lurch at the last minute by the sports ministry.
She alleged that these players, who belong to the junior category, were told by the sports ministry at the last minute that they would have to pay for their travel as it had no funds for it. Drawing attention to the irony of it all, Ms Mahajan said while the government was spending crores on the Commonwealth Games, the sports ministry claimed it had no money for players to travel to an international tournament.
Saying that the government could still reimburse these 15 players’ travel bills, Ms Mahajan lamented the fate of sportspersons in the field of shooting who often do not get coaches or ammunition.
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