Ace woman discuss thrower Krishna Poonia has expressed her disappointment at not being considered for the coveted Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award, and said that this is an insult to her achievements.
"If the demand is that on good performance of one year this will be given, then why was it not given to me? The award is given based on achievements. My performance has been good; still the award is not given to me. I am hurt and take this as an insult to my achievements," she said.
According to certain media reports, India's double trap shooter Ronjan Sodhi's name was not there when the majority of members decided to vote for the Khel Ratna awardee. His name was later brought back for consideration.
The Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna (RGKR) is India's highest honour given for achievement in sports. The award is named after the late Rajiv Gandhi, former Prime Minister of India. It carries a medal, a scroll of honour and a substantial cash component.
Up to 2004-05, the cash component was Rs. 5, 00,000. The money has been increased from Rs. 5, 00,000 to Rs. 7, 50,000.
The award was instituted in the year 1991-92 to supply the lack of a supreme national accolade in the field of sports.
The Khel Ratna was devised to be an overarching honour, conferred for outstanding sporting performance, whether by an individual or a team, across all sporting disciplines in a given year.