Karnataka hikes cash reward for Asian Games champs

BENGALURU: Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on Tuesday felicitated Karnataka athletes who represented India at the recent Asian Games and announced enhanced cash incentives for the medal winners.

The State Government has increased the reward to Rs 1 crore for gold, Rs 75 lakh for silver and Rs 50 lakh for bronze medal winners. A total of Rs 8 crore will be awarded to eight medal-winning athletes.

For the first time, 20 Karnataka athletes who qualified and competed at the Asian Games will receive Rs 5 lakh each, irrespective of their medal status. The State Government has also announced Rs 10 lakh each for Olympics preparation for Asian Games medal winners MR Poovamma, Sneha SS and Shreyanka R Patil, besides Commonwealth Games medal winner Shilpa KS, under the Target Olympics scheme for 2026-27.

Medallists from the Asian Games and Commonwealth Games will also be eligible for direct recruitment to Group-B posts through a selection committee headed by the Chief Secretary. Further, the government has implemented 2% reservation for achiever sportspersons in direct recruitment to Group-A, B, C and D posts.

Shreyanka R Patil (Cricket Women’s Team, Gold)

MR Poovamma (Athletics 4×400 Mixed Relay, 4×400 Women’s Relay – Silver and Gold)

Tilottama Sen (Shooting, Women’s 50m Rifle, Silver)

Ayush R Shetty (Men’s Team Badminton, Silver)

Sneha SS (Athletics 4×100 Mixed Relay, Bronze)

Pranavi S Urs (Golf Women’s Team – Silver and Individual Gold)

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