New Delhi: It's a whole new look for Indian sports awards with the Arjuna, the Khel Ratna and the Dronacharya awards being redesigned and revamped.
The Sports Ministry has unveiled the new-look awards, including the inaugural Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar, crafted by Gajendra Sahu and Mukul Goyal.
The redesigned statuettes, weighing around 1.5 kg, are made of bronze affixed on an ebony wooden base. Each award is nearly a foot and a half and has been polished with an antique finish.
"After a long time, the sports awards have been re-designed and we hope both the President and the athletes like it," Sports Secretary Sindhushree Khullar said.
Mukul Goyal, an alumnus of IIT Kanpur, has designed of the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna medal.
The statuettes for Arjuna, Dronacharya, Dhyan Chand and Tenzing Norgay awards have been designed by Gajendra Sahu, a lecturer at the Government Arts and Crafts College in Bhubaneswar.
There's a change in the cash prizes as well. Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Awardees will get an enhanced cash prize of Rs 7.5 lakh each while the Arjuna and Dronacharya Awardees will receive Rs 5 lakh each.