PV Sindhu to benefit from the rivalry of the two states.
PV Sindhu became India's first-ever woman silver medal winner in the Olympic Games after coming second best against world champion Carolina Marin of Spain in a pulsating clash for the gold in the badminton singles on day 14 of the competition.
As a result, both the Telangana and Andhra Pradesh government have engaged in a sort of competition to outdo each other in terms of giving the Hyderabad girl a bigger cash reward. Leading the competition, Telangana announced a cash reward of Rs 5 crore on Saturday while Andhra Pradesh government decided on Rs 3 crore along with other non-monetary rewards.
After chairing a state cabinet meeting at the Secretariat, Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao said it has been decided to provide Rs 5 crore cash reward and 1,000 yards of land to Sindhu. Besides KCR also offered the ace shuttler a government job, if she was willing to do.
"There is a need to encourage sports personalities. Like Sania Mirza, who brought laurels by winning several tournaments after encouragement by the government, we hope Sindhu will also bring many laurels by winning many more tournaments in the future. She is coming to Hyderabad on August 22. The Cabinet has decided to accord her a grand reception," Rao told reporters.
The Chief Minister also announced a cash reward of Rs 1 crore to Sindhu's coach P Gopichand and praised his efforts to produce shuttlers who are in the world top-50 like Saina Nehwal, P Kashyap and others. Rao also said the Cabinet decided to give a cash reward of Rs 1 crore to grappler Sakshi Malik, who won bronze at the Rio Olympics.
Andhra Pradesh government also announced a slew of rewards, including a cash award of Rs 3 crores. "We will give her 1,000 square yards of house site in the state's new capital Amaravati and also a Group-1 officer post in the state government. She can choose the post she wants," Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu said.
The government would also award Rs 50 lakh to Gopichand for mentoring her. "Sindhu has become a pride for all Indians. To enhance this, we are announcing the rewards. We had been honouring sportspersons who brought glory to the country," Naidu said, recalling the rewards given to Karnam Malleswari, Gopichand and others in the past.
The state Cabinet, which met under Naidu's chairmanship on Saturday, congratulated Sindhu on her inspiring win in the Olympics. "She brought an unprecedented honour to the country," the Chief Minister remarked.
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 "PV Sindhu")
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