Anurag Thakur felicitates silver medalist Nishad Kumar for historic Tokyo Paralympics win

Union Minister of Sports, Youth Affairs Anurag Thakur on Tuesday, August 31, felicitated Tokyo Paralympics silver medalist Nishad Kumar in New Delhi. The meeting also witnessed the presence of the Minister of State for Sports Nisith Pramanik. Hailing from Himachal Pradesh, Nishad bagged silver in the Men’s High Jump T47 category at the Tokyo Paralympics with a jump of 2.06 metres. The images from the event were shared on social media by Thakur’s office showing Nishad being offered flowers, sweets, and a memento. 

While speaking at the event, the Union Minister of Sport, Youth Affairs said ‘India is ecstatic at the brilliant performance of our Paralympians...India has won its highest ever medal tally ever and it has sent the biggest contingent this year.’ Further, as per News On Air, Thakur also noted the unwavering support of Prime Minister Narendra Modi towards sports which has indeed motivated the athletes to give their best. 

Thakur also congratulated Nishad on his massive success and said that the Paralympics silver medalist has shown with perseverance, great heights can be achieved at all levels. The Union Minister said that the government will continue to support the Paralympians in the country with both, facilities and funding so that the athletes can continue to add feathers to their cap internationally. Thakur also said that the additional happiness associated with Nishad’s win is that he hails from his state of Himachal Pradesh.

Minister of State hails Nishad’s inspiring life

Minister of State even noted that Nishad has tackled adverse circumstances from the age of eight and went on to win the silver medal in Olympics. Pramanik called Nishad’s life story inspiring and said that it taught us the lesson that despite the hurdles on the way, success can be achieved. Meanwhile, the Paralympic silver medalist said that he could not believe his achievement at the international event and expressed gratitude to PM Modi for ensuring that they have the support of the government in anything they need including diet, equipment and coaching.

Meanwhile, earlier, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur also hailed NIshad’s victory and announced that "Our government will present an amount of Rs 1 crore to Himachal Gaurav Nishad, a resident of Amb". He said, “In the year 2019, our government also honoured Nishad with Himachal Gaurav Award. It is our aim to promote sports and increase the morale of the players so that Nishad and his talents continue to elevate the name of the state and the country."

IMAGE: @Anurag_Office/Twitter