Dhyan Chand Award

Not to be confused with Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award.

Dhyan Chand Award
Awarded for	Lifetime Achievement sporting honour in India
Sponsored by	Government of India
Reward(s)	₹10 lakh (US$12,000)
First awarded	2002
Last awarded	2023
Highlights
Total awarded	87
First winner	Shahuraj Birajdar Ashok Diwan Aparna Ghosh
Last winner	Manjusha Kanwar Vineet Kumar Sharma Kavitha Selvaraj

Dhyan Chand at the 1936 Summer Olympics.

The Major Dhyan Chand Award, officially known as Major Dhyan Chand Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sports and Games,^[1] is the lifetime achievement sporting honour of the Republic of India. The award is named after hockey wizard Major Dhyan Chand (1905–79), a legendary Indian field hockey player who scored more than 1000 international goals during a career which spanned over 20 years from 1926 to 1948.^[2] It is awarded annually by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. Recipients are selected by a committee constituted by the Ministry and are honoured for their contributions to sport both during their active sporting career and after retirement. As of 2020^[update], the award comprises a statuette, a certificate, ceremonial dress, and a cash prize of ₹10 lakh (US$12,000).^[a][1]

Instituted in 2002, the award is given only to the disciplines included in the events like Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Asian Games, Commonwealth Games, World Championship and World Cup along with Cricket, Indigenous Games, and Parasports.^[6] The nominations for a given year are accepted till 30 April or last working day of April. A nine-member committee evaluates the nominations and later submits their recommendations to the Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports for further approval.^[1]

The first recipients of the award were Shahuraj Birajdar (Boxing), Ashok Diwan (Hockey), and Aparna Ghosh (Basketball), who were honoured in 2002.^[7] Usually conferred upon not more than three sportspersons in a year, a few exceptions have been made (2003, 2012–2013, and 2018–2020) when more recipients were awarded.

Nominations

The nominations for the award are received from all government recognised National Sports Federations, the Indian Olympic Association, the Sports Authority of India, the Sports Promotion and Control Boards, and the state and the union territory governments with not more than two eligible sportspersons nominated for each sports discipline. The Sports Promotion and Control Boards of various Governments organizations includes the All India Police Sports Control Board, Army Sports Control Board, Railways Sports Promotion Board, Indian Navy Sports control Board, Air Force Sports Control Board, Petroleum Sports Promotion Board, Air India Sports Promotion Board, SAIL Sports Promotion Board. In case of cricket, the nominations are received from the Board of Control for Cricket in India as there is no National Sports Federation recognised by the Government. The Sports Authority of India (SAI) is authorised to submit the nominations on behalf of all the de-recognised or under suspension National Sports Federations. The previous award recipients of Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, Arjuna Award, Dronacharya Award, and Dhyan Chand Award can also nominate one sportsperson for the discipline for which they themselves were awarded. The Government can nominate up to two sportspersons in deserving cases where no such nominations have been received from the nominating authorities. The nominations for a given year are accepted till 30 April or last working day of April.^[1]

Selection process

All the received nominations are sent to SAI and concerned National Sports Federations for verification against the claimed achievements. The National Anti-Doping Agency is responsible for providing doping clearance. Any sportsperson who is either penalised or being investigated for use of drugs or substances banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency is not eligible for the award along with the previous award recipients of Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award, Arjuna Award, and Dronacharya Award. A committee consisting of the Joint Secretary and the Director/Deputy Secretary of Department of Sports, the Secretary and the Executive Director/Director (TEAMS) of SAI verify and validate the nominations.^[1]

The valid nominations are considered by a selection committee constituted by the Government. This nine member committee consists of a Chairperson nominated by the Ministry; four members who are either Olympians or previous recipients of the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, Arjuna or Dhyan Chand awards; two sports journalists/experts/commentators; one sports administrator; and the Director General of SAI and the Joint Secretary of Department of Sports; with not more than one sportsperson from any particular discipline being included in the committee.^[1] The medals won in various International championships and events in disciplines included in Summer and Winter Olympic and Paralympics Games, Asian Games, and Commonwealth Games are given 70% weightage. The remaining 30% weightage is given for contributions made towards promotion of sports after the candidate's retirement from an active sporting career. For any other games not included in Olympic, Asian Games, and Commonwealth Games like cricket and indigenous games, individual performances are taken into consideration. The sportsperson with maximum points is given 70 marks, while the remaining candidates are given marks in proportion to the maximum points. For team events, marks are given per the strength of the team.^[1] Following are the points defined for medals at the given events:

Points for winning medals for the performance during entire sporting career

Event	Medal
	Gold	Silver	Bronze
Olympic Games/Paralympic Games	80	70	55
World Championship/World Cup[b]	40	30	20
Asian Games	30	25	20
Commonwealth Games	25	20	15

For a given discipline, not more than two sportspersons, one male and one female, are given highest marks. The committee may not recommend the award to the sportsperson with the highest marks across disciplines but can only recommend the recipient of the highest aggregate marks in a particular sports discipline. The recommendations of the selection committee are submitted to the Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports for further approval.^[1]

Recipients

Key

# Indicates a posthumous honour

List of award recipients, showing the year and discipline(s)^[8]

Year	Recipient(s)	Discipline(s)	Refs.
2002	Shahuraj Birajdar	Boxing	[7]
2002	Ashok Diwan	Hockey	[7]
2002	Aparna Ghosh	Basketball	[7]
2003	Charles Cornelius	Hockey	[9]
2003	Ram Kumar	Basketball	[9]
2003	Dharam Singh	Hockey	[9]
2003	Om Prakash	Volleyball	[9]
2003	Smita Shirole Yadav	Rowing	[9]
2004	Digamber Mehendale	Athletics (Physically challenged)	[10]
2004	Hardayal Singh	Hockey	[10]
2004	Labh Singh	Athletics	[10]
2005	Maruti Mane	Wrestling	[11]
2005	Manoj Kumar Kothari	Billiards & Snooker	[11]
2005	Rajinder Singh	Hockey	[11]
2006	Harishchandra Birajdar	Wrestling	[12]
2006	Uday K. Prabhu	Athletics	[12]
2006	Nandy Singh	Hockey	[12]
2007	Rajinder Singh	Wrestling	[13]
2007	Shamsher Singh	Kabaddi	[13]
2007	Varinder Singh	Hockey	[13]
2008	Gian Singh	Wrestling	[3]
2008	Hakam Singh	Athletics	[3]
2008	Mukhbain Singh	Hockey	[3]
2009	Satbir Singh Dahiya	Wrestling	[4]
2009	Ishar Singh Deol	Athletics	[4]
2010	Anita Chanu	Weightlifting	[14]
2010	Satish Pillai	Athletics	[14]
2010	Kuldeep Singh	Wrestling	[14]
2011	Shabbir Ali	Football	[15]
2011	Sushil Kohli	Swimming	[15]
2011	Rajkumar Baisla	Wrestling	[16]
2012	Gundeep Kumar	Hockey	[17]
2012	Vinod Kumar	Wrestling	[17]
2012	Jagraj Singh Mann	Athletics	[17]
2012	Sukhbir Singh Tokas	Para-Sports	[17]
2013	Syed Ali	Hockey	[18]
2013	Anil Mann	Wrestling	[18]
2013	Mary D'Souza Sequeira	Athletics	[18]
2013	Girraj Singh	Athletics (Parasports)	[18]
2014	Zeeshan Ali	Tennis	[19]
2014	Gurmail Singh	Hockey	[19]
2014	K. P. Thakkar	Swimming	[19]
2015	Romeo James	Hockey	[20]
2015	Shiv Prakash Mishra	Tennis	[20]
2015	T. P. Padmanabhan Nair	Volleyball	[20]
2016	Sylvanus Dung Dung	Hockey	[21]
2016	Sathi Geetha	Athletics	[21]
2016	Rajendra Pralhad Shelke	Rowing	[21]
2017	Bhupender Singh	Athletics	[22]
2017	Syed Shahid Hakim	Football	[22]
2017	Sumrai Tete	Hockey	[22]
2018	Satyadev Prasad	Archery	[23]
2018	Bharat Chettri	Hockey	[23]
2018	Bobby Aloysius	Athletics	[23]
2018	Dadu Dattatray Chougale	Wrestling	[23]
2019	Manuel Frederick	Hockey	[24]
2019	Arup Basak	Table Tennis	[24]
2019	Manoj Kumar	Wrestling	[24]
2019	Nitin Kirtane	Tennis	[24]
2019	Chhangte Lalremsanga	Archery	[24]
2020	Kuldip Singh Bhullar	Athletics	[25]
2020	Jincy Philips	Athletics	[25]
2020	Pradeep Shrikrishna Gandhe	Badminton	[25]
2020	Trupti Murgunde	Badminton	[25]
2020	Usha Nagisetty	Boxing	[25]
2020	Lakha Singh	Boxing	[25]
2020	Sukhvinder Singh Sandhu	Football	[25]
2020	Ajit Pal Singh	Hockey	[25]
2020	Manpreet Singh	Kabaddi	[25]
2020	Ranjith Kumar Jayaseelan	Para Athletics	[25]
2020	Satyaprakash Tiwari	Para Badminton	[25]
2020	Manjeet Singh	Rowing	[25]
2020	Sachin Nag	Swimming	[25]
2020	Nandan Bal	Tennis	[25]
2020	Netarpal Hooda	Wrestling	[25]
2021	Lekha K.C.	Boxing	[26]
2021	Abhijit Kunte	Chess	[26]
2021	Davinder Singh	Hockey	[26]
2021	Vikas Kumar	Kabaddi	[26]
2021	Sajan Singh	Wrestling	[26]
2022	Ashwini Akkunji	Athletics	[27]
2022	Dharamvir Singh	Hockey	[27]
2022	B.C. Suresh	Kabaddi	[27]
2022	Nir Bahadur Gurung	Para Athletics	[27]
2023	Manjusha Kanwar	Badminton	[28]
2023	Vineet Kumar Sharma	Hockey	[28]
2023	Kavitha Selvaraj	Kabaddi	[28]

Controversies

In August 2015, the Ministry announced the award to Romeo James (Hockey), Shiv Prakash Mishra (Tennis), and T. P. Padmanabhan Nair (Volleyball).^[20] A Public-Interest Litigation was filed in the Madras High Court by Paralympic athlete Ranjith Kumar Jayaseelan. The petitioner mentioned that he submitted the nomination after fulfilling the criteria by getting 60% for medals and 30% for contributing for sports promotion. Kumar requested to annul the award announced on three recipients. The Court ordered a notice to the Ministry seeking an explanation about the selection.^[29]

Explanatory notes

1. The cash prize was revised from ₹3 lakh (US$3,500) to ₹5 lakh (US$5,900) in 2009,^[3][4] and to ₹10 lakh (US$12,000) in 2020.^[5]
2. A World Championship/World Cup is generally organised every four years. For different cyclicities, proportionate marks are given.

References

1. "Scheme for the Dhyan Chand Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sports and Games (Amended as on 3 February 2016)" (PDF). Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. 3 February 2016. p. 11. Archived (PDF) from the original on 29 December 2020. Retrieved 7 January 2017.
2. "Discover hockey's answer to Pele". BBC Sports Academy. BBC. 26 February 2004. Archived from the original on 1 September 2015. Retrieved 22 October 2015.
   • Dhaliwal, Ravi (28 August 2009). "Dhyan Chand: Player, legend and the man". The Tribune. Muktsar. Archived from the original on 20 October 2015. Retrieved 22 October 2015.
3. "Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna & Arjuna Awards announced" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 19 August 2008. Archived from the original on 26 April 2016. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
4. "Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, Arjuna Awards and other Sports Awards Announced" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 29 July 2009. Archived from the original on 26 April 2016. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
5. "Khel Ratna awardees to receive 25 lakh, 15 lakh for Arjuna awardees". The Indian Express. 29 August 2020. Archived from the original on 16 September 2020. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
6. "Dhyan Chand Award for Life Time Achievement in Sports and Games" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 7 February 2004. Archived from the original on 1 February 2017. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
7. "President presents Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, Arjuna and Dronacharya Awards" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 29 August 2002. Archived from the original on 26 April 2016. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
8. "List of Dhyan Chand Awardees". Sports Authority of India. Archived from the original on 14 February 2017. Retrieved 7 January 2017.
9. "Arjuna Awards, Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, Dhyan Chand and Dronacharya Awards given away" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 29 August 2003. Archived from the original on 26 April 2016. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
10. "President gives away Arjuna Awards and Dronacharya Awards" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 21 September 2004. Archived from the original on 26 April 2016. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
11. "President gives away Arjuna Awards and Dronacharya Awards" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 29 August 2005. Archived from the original on 26 April 2016. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
12. "Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award, 2005, Arjuna awards 2005, Dhyan Chand awards, 2006 and Dronacharya awards for the year 2005 Announced" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 23 August 2006. Archived from the original on 26 April 2016. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
13. "President gives away Arjuna Awards and Dronacharya Awards" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 29 August 2007. Archived from the original on 26 April 2016. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
14. "President Gives Away Sports and Adventure Awards" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 29 August 2010. Archived from the original on 8 January 2017. Retrieved 7 January 2017.
15. "Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, Arjuna Awards and other Sports Awards Announced" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 18 August 2011. Archived from the original on 26 April 2016. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
16. "कुश्ती प्रतियोगिता का समापन, पहलवानों को किया सम्मानित". Archived from the original on 31 January 2020. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
17. "President Gives Away National Sports and Adventure Awards" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 29 August 2012. Archived from the original on 8 January 2017. Retrieved 7 January 2017.
18. "Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and Arjuna Awards" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 22 August 2013. Archived from the original on 26 April 2016. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
19. "National Sports Awards 2014" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 21 August 2014. Archived from the original on 26 April 2016. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
20. "National Sports and Adventure Awards" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 29 August 2015. Archived from the original on 8 January 2017. Retrieved 7 January 2017.
21. "National Sports Awards 2016" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 22 August 2016. Archived from the original on 25 August 2016. Retrieved 23 August 2016.
22. "National Sports Awards 2017" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 22 August 2017. Archived from the original on 23 August 2017. Retrieved 22 August 2017.
23. "National Sports Awards 2018 announced; Mirabai Chanu and Virat Kohli to get Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 20 September 2018. Archived from the original on 17 February 2020. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
24. "National Sports Awards 2018 announced; Bajrang Punia and Deepa Malik to get Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 20 August 2019. Archived from the original on 4 January 2024. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
25. "National Sports Awards 2020 announced – Rohit Sharma, Mariyappan T., Manik Batra, Ms Vinesh and Ms Rani bag the Khel Ratna" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 21 August 2020. Archived from the original on 22 August 2020. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
26. "National Sports Awards 2021 announced" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 2 November 2021. Archived from the original on 16 November 2021. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
27. "Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports announces National Sports Awards 2022" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 14 November 2022. Archived from the original on 14 November 2022. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
28. "Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports announces National Sports Awards 2023" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 20 December 2022. Archived from the original on 4 January 2024. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
29. "Notice to government on plea by Madurai paralympics athlete". The Times of India. Madurai. 29 August 2015. Archived from the original on 6 February 2017. Retrieved 20 January 2017.

External links