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Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman hails rise of good performance amongst sports during 2024 Budget speech
India’s finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman lauded the rise of sports in India during her Union Budget speech. The Indian contingent finished with its highest-ever medal tally during the Asian Games last year.
Even the Asian Para Games contingent did well and won many medals. Chess has also produced some amazing Indian talents. 18-year-old Praggnanandhaa came in for special attention from the Finance Minister.
The youngster reached the finals of the Chess World Cup before losing to Magnus Carlsen. This achievement was lauded by Nirmala Sitharaman during her speech in the floor of the house.
Finance minister lauds Indian growth in sports
India’s finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman was presenting the interim budget ahead of the 2024 Elections. During her chat listing all the achievements the country has made, her comments on sports took the limelight.
Sitharaman said “The country is proud of our youth scaling new heights in sports. The highest-ever medal tally in Asian Games and Asian Para Games in 2023 reflects a high confidence level. Chess prodigy and our number-one ranked player Praggnanandhaa put up a stiff fight against the reigning World Champion Magnus Carlsson in 2023. Today, India has over 80 chess grandmasters compared to little over 20 in 2010,”
Last year during the Asian Games, India finished 4th in the medals tally. The final tally read, 28 gold medals, 38 silver medals, and 41 bronze medals. Men’s and Women’s cricket won gold medals for the first time. The Indian Kabaddi Team did well to beat Iran in the final of a pulsating contest.
Despite their bad performance in the AFC Asian Cup 2024, even Indian football has started to perform well. Indian Cricket Team reached the finals of the ODI World Cup and the World Test Championships in 2023. 2024 is set to be yet another huge year for Indian sports. The focus will be on the huge Olympics set to be held in Paris this year. The likes of Neeraj Chopra will be looking to bring even more glory to the nation with their performances.