The cash prize associated with Major Dhyan Chand Ratna Award is :

Question

Accepted Answer

The correct option is (4):
The Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award is the highest sporting honour in India, recognizing spectacular performance over a period of four years. The cash prize associated with this prestigious award is ₹25,00,000 (Twenty-Five Lakh Rupees), which is provided along with a medallion and a certificate of honour. This amount was officially revised and significantly increased from the earlier prize money (which was ₹7.5 lakh) by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports to properly recognize and reward the excellence of the nation's top athletes at the international level. As a student of Physical Education, you must remember that this award, renamed in 2021 after the legendary hockey player Major Dhyan Chand, represents the pinnacle of athletic achievement and hence commands the highest cash reward among India's sports awards.

The incorrect option is (1):
The amount of ₹10,00,000 (Ten Lakh Rupees) is the cash prize given for a different, though also highly respected, national sports award. Specifically, this amount is associated with the Dhyan Chand Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sports and Games, which honors a sportsperson's contribution to sport both during their active career and after retirement. It is important to distinguish between the 'Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award' and the 'Dhyan Chand Award,' as they have different criteria and different cash prizes. The ₹10,00,000 is also the current prize money for the Dronacharya Award (Regular Category), given to outstanding coaches. Therefore, while ₹10,00,000 is a valid prize amount for a major sports award, it does not apply to the Khel Ratna Award.

The incorrect options are (2) and (3):
The amounts ₹9,00,000 (Nine Lakh Rupees) and ₹8,00,000 (Eight Lakh Rupees) are not the current or historical cash prizes associated with the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award or any other primary national sports awards of India. The prize money for the Khel Ratna was increased to ₹25,00,000, and before that, the amount was ₹7.5 lakh. There has been no instance where the cash prize for this, or the Dhyan Chand Lifetime award, was set at either nine or eight lakh rupees. These figures are simply distractors and do not correspond to the monetary recognition given to the recipients of the highest sporting honour in the country.