Rajasthan govt announces cash rewards for Paralympic medal winners
Shooter Avani Lekhara to get Rs 3 crore
Jaipur, (PTI): Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Monday congratulated three Paralympic medal winners from the state, announcing cash rewards of up to Rs 3 crore for each of them.
Shooter Avani Lekhara, who has won a gold medal at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo, will be given a cash reward of Rs 3 crore, while javelin throwers Devendra Jhajharia and Sundar Singh Gurjar will get Rs 2 crore and Rs 1 crore respectively for winning silver and bronze medals.
All the three players from Rajasthan have already been appointed to the post of assistant conservator of forest in the state forest department.
"The players of the state have brought laurels to the country and the state by winning medals, we are very proud of them," Gehlot tweeted.
Lekhara scripted history on Monday as she became the first Indian woman to win a gold medal at the Paralympics, firing her way to the top of the podium in the R-2 women's 10m Air Rifle Standing SH1 event.
The 19-year-old from Jaipur, who sustained spinal cord injuries in a car accident in 2012, finished with a world record equalling total of 249.6, which is also a new Paralympic record.
"Heartiest Congratulations to Jaipur's Avani Lekhara for winning first ever Gold for India in ShootingParaSport! What a superb performance by her in Women's 10m AR Standing SH1 Final as she created history! Entire nation is very proud of her. It's a great day for Indian sports!" Gehlot tweeted earlier in the day.
Two-time gold-winning javelin throw veteran Jhajharia clinched a stupendous third Paralympic medal, a silver this time, while Gurjar won a bronze in the men's javelin throw F46 final.
The chief minister congratulated the two, calling it a "marvellous moment".
"We are so proud of Rajasthan's Paralympic javelin throwers Devendra Jhajharia, who grabbed Silver & Sundar Singh Gurjar for claiming Bronze at Men's Javelin Throw event, TokyoParalympics. It's a marvelous moment. Heartiest Congratulations to Dev Jhajharia & Sundar S Gurjar!" he said in another tweet.
Gehlot also hailed Yogesh Kathuniya for winning a silver medal in Men's Discus Throw F56.
"It's great news for all of us. The nation is so proud!" he tweeted.
Kathuniya, a B.Com graduate from New Delhi's Kirorimal College, sent the disc to a best distance of 44.38m in his sixth and last attempt to clinch the silver.
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SGPC writes to Mann, seeks ban on 'Emergency' in Punjab a day before release
Amritsar, Jan 16 (PTI): The SGPC on Thursday wrote to Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, seeking a ban on the release of Kangana Ranaut's movie 'Emergency' saying it "tarnishes" the image of Sikhs and "misrepresents" history.
Actor and BJP MP Ranaut's 'Emergency' is slated to release in cinemas on January 17.
In the letter to Mann, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee chief Harjinder Singh Dhami expressed strong objection to Ranaut's film.
Dhami said that if the film is released in Punjab, it will spark "outrage and anger" in the Sikh community and therefore it is the responsibility of the government to ban its release in the state.
The SGPC, an apex gurdwara body, had earlier also protested the film.
"It has come to our attention that the movie 'Emergency' produced by BJP MP Kangana Ranaut is going to be released on 17th January 2025 in cinemas in different cities of Punjab and the tickets have also started to be booked," its letter to Mann read.
Dhami said the SGPC had also protested the release of the movie in a letter to the Punjab Chief Secretary on November 14 last year.
"But it is sad that the Punjab government has not taken any step till now. If this film is released on January 17, 2025, then it is natural to create outrage and anger in the Sikh world," the current letter read.
Dhami said the SGPC will submit a letter also to all the deputy commissioners in Punjab, seeking a ban on the film in the state.
The SGPC denounced the "character assassination" of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, the Khalistani militant killed in 1984 in a military operation.
"If this film is released in Punjab, we will be forced to strongly oppose it at the state level," Dhami said.
In August last year, the SGPC sent a legal notice to the producers of the 'Emergency' film, alleging that it "misrepresented" the character and history of Sikhs, and asked them to remove the objectionable scenes depicting "anti-Sikh" sentiments.
In the notice, the producers of the film, including Kangana Ranaut, were asked to remove the trailer released on August 14 from all public and social media platforms and tender a written apology to the Sikh community.
The SGPC objected to film writing separate letters to the Minister of Information and Broadcasting and the Central Board of Film Certification.
