NEW DELHI: Paralympics icon Devendra Jhajharia has added another feather to his illustrious cap after becoming the first para-athlete from the country to have been awarded the prestigious Padma Bhushan, the third-highest civilian honour in the country. Tokyo Olympics gold medalist javelin thrower, Neeraj Chopra, is among the six sportspersons who will be conferred with the Padma Shri this year, the country's fourth highest civilian award.
Neeraj, 24, has also been awarded the Param Vishisht Seva Medal on Tuesday for his distinguished service by the Indian Army. He was conferred with the Arjuna Award in 2018, Vishisht Seva Medal (VSM) in 2020 and Khel Ratna in 2021 for excellence in sports. The Panipat-born won the country's first athletics gold medal in the Olympics. Three-time Paralympics medallist in javelin throw, Jhajharia, 40, already holds the distinction of being the first para-athlete to be conferred with the Padma Shri in 2012 as well as the first to receive the Khel Ratna in 2017. He is the only sportsperson awarded with the Padma Bhushan in this year's list of Padma awards approved on the eve of the Republic Day by president Ram Nath Kovind on Tuesday.
Other sportspersons to have been awarded with the Padma Shri include Indian women's hockey team forward Vandana Katariya, Tokyo Paralympics gold medallists Avani Lekhara, Sumit Antil and Pramod Bhagat, former India football team captain Brahmanand Sankhwalkar, martial arts coach from Kashmir's Bandipora district, Faisal Ali Dar, and the 93-year-old Kalarippayattu mentor Sankaranarayana Menon Chundayil.
Katariya's family in Haridwar's Roshnabad area was subjected to alleged casteist slurs after the Indian women's hockey team went down to Argentina in the semifinals of the Tokyo Olympics. Katariya, a Dalit, had scored four goals during the Olympics.
For Jhajharia, the news has come as a pleasant surprise. He plans to celebrate the occasion with his family in his village Jhajharian ki Dhani in Rajasthan's Churu district. "This recognition is not just for me, but for the whole differently-abled community in the country. This is the first time that Padma Bhushan has been awarded to a differently-abled sportsperson and the recognition has only added to my responsibilities as an athlete towards the nation," Jhajharia told TOI from Gandhinagar.
Padma Bhushan: Devendra Jhajharia para javelin)
Padma Shri: Sumit Antil (para javelin), Pramod Bhagat (para badminton), Neeraj Chopra (javelin), Vandana Katariya (hockey), Avani Lekhara (para shooting), Brahmanand Sankhwalkar (football), Faisal Ali Dar (martial arts) and Sankaranarayana Menon Chundayil (kalaripayattu)
