I-N-D-I-A, the incredible nation, the federal democratic republic society. We honour our laminating youth, bright stars, stalwart citizens with different awards and medals. Among all these honours, one of the most prestigious ones is Bharat Ratna. What is this award?
The Bharat Ratna is the highest civilian award of the Republic of India, Instituted in 1954. The award is conferred “in recognition of exceptional service/performance of the highest order”, without distinction of race, occupation, position, or sex. This is the actual description of this award and no doubt we are doing well and without any biases in giving this award. But what about the legendary hockey player Dhyan Chand?
Being the star in that colonial period of India, this man had led the Indian hockey team to grab gold medal three times. Even after the completion of 72 years of free and independent India, Dhyan Chand name is still missing from the Bharat Ratna list.
Who is Major Dhyan Chand?
Dhyan Chand (August 29, 1905 – December 3, 1979) was an Indian hockey player and one of the greatest hockey players in the history of this sport. He was known for his extraordinary goal-scoring feats, besides earning three Olympic gold medals, in 1928, 1932 and 1936 in the colonial era. Commonly known as “The Wizard” or “The Magician of Hockey” for his superb ball control, Chand played internationally; he scored 570 goals in 185 matches. The Government of India awarded him India’s third highest civilian honour of Padma Bhushan in 1956. His birthday August 29th is celebrated as National Sports Day in the country with great pomp and show.
The cycle of naming and selection
Before 2011, sports person aren’t nominated for Bharat Ratna, but after the reformation by the government the criteria changed to “any field of human endeavour”. After this, several sportspeople came out, and among them, the most talked one was Dhyan Chand, recommended multiple times for the posthumous honour. In 2011 about 82 members of parliament approved his name and again in 2012 sports ministry supported his name, but as we all know, nothing changed. In 2013, Sachin Tendulkar became the first sportsperson to be honoured with this award, which came out as significant criticism factor for the government.
The cycle didn’t stop here, after every year his name is recommended, but again the loop of repeating the cycle doesn’t stop.
The Real Discrepancy
The news claims that it was Rahul Gandhi who recommended Tendulkar’s name in place of Dhyan Chand in a repeated manner every time. However, a question for now, what is stopping the NDA from awarding Dhyan Chand Bharat Ratna? If it was UPA from 2011-2013, then why not after 2014?
The unfortunate thing is the politicians who are moulding everything from economics, to sports to living needs everything with the ploy of their so-called chairs.
As Modi is famous for changing the things like demonetisation, GST, Abrogation of 370, Triple Talaq and more, irrespective of the gain or loss whatever their government planned. We can expect at least this recognition for Dhyan Chand as he deserves one.
Above all this, he played a significant role in the Indian hockey team, and Bharat Ratna will be a befitting tribute to his dedication and contribution in the field of hockey.
