Hockey Player Vandana Katariya Named Uttarakhand’s Women And Child Development Ambassador
The 2020 Tokyo Olympics are over, and the India squad is returning home to a rousing welcome as you read this. The past few days have been a roller coaster of sorts for our athletes, but not entirely in good ways. Take, for example, the case of Vandana Katariya, who plays forward on the Indian women’s hockey team that reached the semi-finals at the Olympics, losing the bronze to Great Britain in a match that woke India up at 7 am and kept them glued to their seats. While Katariya with her teammates was fighting for glory, back home in Haridwar, her family was being harassed because of their caste. Now, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has appointed Vandana Katariya as the brand ambassador of the state’s Department of Women Empowerment and Child Development.
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On Sunday, a ceremony was organised to felicitate the recipients of the Tilu Rauteli Award and the Anganwadi Workers Award. And it is at this function that Uttarakhand CM Dhami made this announcement for the Team India hockey player’s appointment.
The state sports minister, Arvind Pandey, had earlier paid a visit to the family home of Vandana Katariya in Roshanabad village of Haridwar, presenting her family with flowers and ceremonial shawls in appreciation of Katariya’s game. At the ceremony on Sunday, Pandey talked about a sports policy implemented by the Uttarakhand state government, which made provisions for government jobs for the state’s athletes who win medals at national and international levels. He also assured that a separate fund was being arranged for the training of these sportspersons.
“Vandana is a role model for today’s youth, and everyone should learn from her. Players will soon come from all around Uttarakhand, inspired by her,” Pandey had said.
Also Read: Indian Hockey Player Vandana Katariya’s Family Harassed, Called Casteist Slurs After Losing Match In Tokyo Olympics
This isn’t the only appreciation that has been bestowed on Vandana Katariya. As per an earlier announcement by CM Dhami, a cash reward of Rs. 25 Lakh will also be presented to the player who put forth an impressive performance at the Tokyo Olympics, being the only female Indian player to score a hattrick.
It’s heartening to see the appreciation and encouragement being showered on sportswomen like Vandana Katariya, who deserve to be just as well recognised for their contributions as their male counterparts in their and other sports. At the same time, I do wonder if there’s more we could do, as a country, or even as the people sitting in power in the state and central governments, to dispel the filthy bias of casteism that makes these sportspersons’ everyday realities much harsher.
