Captain Amarinder Singh to recommend Hockey Legend Balbir Singh for Bharat Ratna

Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Tuesday said he would recommend name of Hockey legend and 3-time Olympics gold champion Balbir Singh for Bharat Ratna.

  Chief Minister met ailing former player at PGI to present to him Maharaja Ranjit Singh Award, after felicitating around 100 or players, including veterans, with award at an event in Chandigarh. award has been reinstituted after nearly a dece’s gap and Captain Amarinder said it would be institutionalized as an annual event.
 
At awards ceremony, Chief Minister said that players like great Hockey Olympian should be aptly houred in recognition of ir superlative contribution to sports.

Sharing his stalgic moments with audience, Chief Minister expressed pleasure to be in company of sports veterans like great Milkha Singh, former Cricket skipper Bishen Singh Bedi, former World Cup Hockey Captain Ajit Pal Singh, who were center of miration for entire nation.

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award would hour se veterans and inspire a whole new generation of sportspersons to excel in ir respective fields, said chief minister. award, which was instituted way back in 1978, carries a cash prize of Rs.2 lakhs, a trophy of Maharaja Ranjit Singh Ji in armour atop a steed, a Blazer and a Scroll.

Earlier, in his welcome dress Sports Minister Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi while lauding Captain Amarinder Singh's passion for sports, said chief minister’s visionary and dynamic approach h led Government to come out with a comprehensive Sports Policy encompassing all aspects of promoting sporting infrastructure and well-being of state’s sporting icons.

He urged all senior sportspersons and Punjabis settled abro to come forward and supplement efforts of state government in identifying and nurturing young sporting talent. untapped sporting potential needs proper direction and guidance, he said furr ding that state would ensure best of facilities for all sportspersons.

Sodhi also anunced that veteran sportspersons and international medallists would continue to get sports pension in dition to pension y h alrey been drawing from ir respective departments where y served.

function was attended by Cabinet Minister Shu Singh Dharmsot, Senior visor to CM Lt. General (Retd) TS Shergill, Media visor to CM Raveen Thukral, MLA Pargat Singh, ACS Sports Sanjay Kumar, and Director Sports Rahul Gupta and veteran Hindi film actor Ranjeet.

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