Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju on Thursday announced financial support of Rs 5 lakh each for the bereaved families of former hockey players M K Kaushik and Ravinder Pal Singh, who passed away last week due to COVID-19.
Both Kaushik and Singh were a part of the Indian hockey gold-medal winning team at 1980 Moscow Olympics.
“We’ve lost two hockey greats to Covid. MK Kaushik ji & Ravinder Pal Singh ji’s contribution to Indian sport will always be remembered,” Rijiju wrote on his twitter handle.
“As a gesture of support, the Sports Ministry is handing over Rs 5 lakh each to the bereaved families. We stand with them in this hour of grief,” he added.
Apart from achieving laurels as a player, Arjuna Awardee Kaushik had also successfully coached both the senior men and women’s teams.
Under his coaching, the Indian men’s hockey team won the gold medal in the 1998 Bangkok Asian Games and the Indian women’s hockey team won a bronze medal at the Doha Asian Games in 2006.
He was also the assistant coach of the Indian men’s hockey team, who won the Asian Games Gold in 2014. For his contribution to Indian Hockey, he was also bestowed with the Dronacharya Award in 2002.
Singh, on the other hand, played in two Olympics – 1980 Moscow and 1984 Los Angeles.
He also represented India in the Champions Trophy in Karachi (1980, 1983), Silver Jubilee 10-nation Cup in Hong Kong in 1983, 1982 World Cup in Mumbai and 1982 Asia Cup in Karachi, among other tournaments.
