Jharkhand To Give Rs 50 Lakh Each To 2 Women's Hockey Players From State

Jharkhand has announced Rs 50 lakh each to Hockey players Salima Tete and Nikki Pradhan for their stellar performance at the Tokyo Olympics, Chief Minister Hemant Soren said.

The medal may have proved elusive but the way the Indian women's hockey team fought against the Great Britain team in the bronze medal match is commendable, Mr Soren said.

The women's hockey team's dream of securing its maiden Olympic medal remained unfulfilled as it lost 3-4 to Great Britain in a hard-fought bronze play-off but the stout-hearted side managed to record its best ever finish at the Games in Tokyo Olympics.

"I salute the entire Indian women's hockey team... For the better performance of the daughters of Jharkhand, the government will modify its earlier decision to give and provide Rs 50 lakh each to Jharkhand's hockey players," Mr Soren said.

Salima Tete (19) from the state's Simdega district and Nikki Pradhan (27) from Khunti were part of the women's hockey team that made history in Tokyo earlier in the day.

Jharkhand had declared before the start of the Olympics that Rs 2 crore will be given to the players of the state for winning gold, Rs 1 crore for winning silver and Rs 50 lakh for winning bronze.

Hemant Soren said though the team could not win the bronze, their stellar performance has won hearts and the state government will convert players' ancestral mud houses into pucca houses.

He said the two daughters of Jharkhand made wonderful contributions to the women's hockey team.

Mr Soren promised to make available all possible facilities for players to hone their skills for future games.

While Britain bounced back to win the match 4-3, Indian team's efforts in Tokyo were widely applauded for never giving up throughout their game.