New Delhi: In what appears to be a hasty damage control exercise, Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy on Wednesday evening announced a Rs-2 lakh cash award for the members of Indian hockey team.
The move came hours after Kumaraswamy snubbed the hockey players – who had threatened to go on strike for not having being treated at par with the cricketers.
Kumaraswamy had said the hockey stars would be accorded the same honour if they win the Hockey World Cup. "Let the hockey team win the world cup, then we will reward them," he said.
Interestingly, the statement came just before Kumaraswamy went for a state Cabinet meeting. His stance changed immediately after the meeting.
The controversial statement came on a day when chief coach of the national team Joaquim Carvalho expressed his disappointment that while title victory of his wards in the Asia Cup was ignored, the Indian cricket team was given a hero’s welcome.
"Why our hockey players are being treated like orphans and why our politicians are biased against hockey, the national game?" Carvalho was quoted as saying by news agencies.
He said a coach and four players had planned to go on hunger strike before the Karnataka Chief Minister's house to protest announcment of Rs five lakh cash award each for the members of the cricket team, while "treating the State hockey players like dust".
(With inputs from PTI)
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