Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports Anurag Thakur on Sunday said the Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host the Paralympians on their return to India.
Hailing the Prime Minister for devoting time with the athletes, Thakur said, “He (PM) had hosted the Olympians when they arrived in India and now he is going to host the Paralympians as well.”
According to him, Modi always had a vision for sports including the specially-abled athletes.
Speaking about the Goutam Buddha Nagar district magistrate Suhas Y L winning a silver medal in the Paralympics in Tokyo, the Minister said, “What could be a better news when you land in Karnataka and our young athlete who has won another medal for India belongs to Karnataka. My heartfelt congratulations to both the medallists winning a gold and silver medal for us.”
He also said that in 2016, the contingent for the Paralympics was 19 and now in 2021, the country won 19 medals in 2021 Tokyo Paralympics.
“It clearly shows that India has done well. Our medal tally has increased by about five times. It is a big achievement. A big congratulations to all the athletes,” Thakur said.
The Minister also urged all the sports federations to formulate big plans for 2024 and 2028 Olympics so that India improves its position further.
“All the sports federations have to play an important role and we have to work together to formulate a big project so that in 2024 and 2028, India’s position improves further,” Thakur, who also holds the Information and Broadcasting portfolio, told reporters.
Thakur is here to take part in a host of events including interaction with the athletes.
According to him, the public perception towards sports has changed with the government giving impetus to athletics, which resulted in India’s impressive performance in the Olympics and Paralympics.
“The biggest thing is the changing attitude towards sports. When the government is giving all sorts of facilities and when the Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself speaks to the sportspersons and encourages them, it has impact on every section of the society, whether be it individual, corporate, sports associations or any other organisation,” Thakur said.
The Minister recalled that when he was in the flight, people came and complimented him saying that India has done well in the Olympics and Paralympics.
He said the response cricket used to get is now seen for Olympics games.
India won seven medals in the Tokyo Olympics including one gold and two silvers, while in the Paralympics this year, the country won 19 medals including five gold and eight silver.
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Dear Reader,
Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.
We, however, have a request.
As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.
Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.
Digital Editor
For all the latest Sports News Click Here
