Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Wednesday met Tokyo Olympics bound state athletes and conveyed his wishes to them, apart from announcing cash incentives. Jagan met international badminton stars PV Sindhu, R Satwik Sairaj, and women's hockey player Rajani Etimarpu's parents as she is currently undergoing training at Bengaluru. The CM awarded Rs 5 lakh to each of the three sportspersons who will be participating in the Tokyo Games set to take place from July 23 to August 8.
CM Jagan also gave a copy of the Government Order allocating 2 acres of land to PV Sindhu to set up a badminton academy in the port city of Visakhapatnam. Tourism, Culture and Youth Advancement Minister Muttamsettii Srinivasa Rao, Principal Secretary Ram Gopal, Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh employees Venkata Ramana, June Galio and Ramakrishna were present on the occasion.
PV Sindhu had met CM Jagan back in September 2019 and requested 5 acres of land to set up a badminton academy in Vizag. The meeting came soon after PV Sindhu became the first Indian to win the BWF (Badminton World Federation) World Championships. She has since been appointed the brand ambassador for the Andhra Pradesh government's anti-corruption helpline and was featured along with CM Jagan in a video released by the state government to promote the helpline.
PV Sindhu was appointed as a Deputy Collector in the Andhra Pradesh government in 2017 after she won the silver medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics. The previous TDP government led by Chandrababu Naidu had also announced a cash reward of Rs 3 crore for the ace shuttler, in addition to a residential plot in Amaravati and a Group-I officer's job. PV Sindhu is a resident of Hyderabad, where she has received her badminton training. Her parents are natives of Andhra Pradesh.
(With IANS inputs)
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