Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has announced a cash prize of Rs 10 lakh each and government jobs for the Karnataka players of the Indian blind women’s cricket team, which has made history by winning the T20 World Cup.

In addition, the 13 players in the team from other states will receive a cash prize of Rs 2 lakh each, showcasing the chief minister’s commitment to sports.

Grand welcome at CM’s residence

On Tuesday (November 25), during a grand welcome for the women’s team at his official residence “Kaveri”, Siddaramaiah warmly welcomed the world champion players and praised each of their achievements openly. He announced the cash prize and government jobs in the Department of Women and Child Development for the players from Karnataka who have raised the state’s flag on a global level.

During the meeting, the CM honoured each player by calling them close and giving them a pat on the back, saying their hard work, coming from various challenging backgrounds to achieve global success, is commendable.

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He specifically mentioned the leadership and performance of the team captain, Deepika from Shira, Tumkur. He praised the contributions of Mahantesh G Kivadasanavar, the president of the Cricket Association for the Blind in India (CABI), who has been a backbone for blind cricket, and assured all kinds of support to the organisation.

‘CM’s encouragement is great motivation’

Speaking about the CM’s hospitality and encouragement, Mahantesh G Kivadasanavar, founder of the Samarthanam Trust, said, “We are eternally grateful for the love and promises shown by the Chief Minister and his Cabinet colleagues. The announcement of government jobs and cash prizes for the players has brought us immense joy. The encouragement they have provided to blind cricket is a great motivation for us to achieve even more in the coming days.”

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The Indian blind women’s cricket team has made history by winning the inaugural T20 World Cup. It is another matter of pride for the state that the champion team was led by Karnataka’s own TC Deepika.

Govt’s error

On Monday (November 24), The Federal in an article titled The joy of blind women who won the World Cup, unseen by the government’s blind eye reported that the government had neglected its responsibilities by not welcoming the team at the airport to see their achievement first-hand and encourage them.

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The report contrasted this with the manner in which the Karnataka government had celebrated exuberantly a few months ago when the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) won the IPL trophy. Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar himself went to HAL airport to welcome the team. Later, a grand event was organised in front of the Vidhana Soudha, where they were honoured.

In this case, the Cricket Association for the Blind in India (CABI) and Samarthanam had to step forward to organise a celebration in Bengaluru.

Righting a wrong

The article by The Federal indicated that the achievements of the champion blind women’s team did not seem to be recognised by the government. It highlighted the fact that true women’s empowerment means personally welcoming such achievers and announcing respect and financial support from the government for them.

(This article first appeared in The Federal Karnataka)