Former cricketer Virender Sehwag and hockey stalwart Sardar Singh were included in a 12-member committee on Friday. The committee was constituted by the sports ministry to select this year’s National Sports Awards winners. Paralympic silver-medallist Deepa Malik is also a part of the panel.
The ministry had opted for a single selection committee to pick the awardees among both athletes and coaches. It will be headed by Retired Supreme Court Justice. Mukundakam Sharma.
Other members of the committee include former table tennis player Monalisa Baruah Mehta, boxer Venkatesan Devarajan. It also includes sports commentator Manish Batavia and journalists Alok Sinha and Neeru Bhatia.
The panel will also have representation from the Sports Ministry. This will include Sports Authority of India Director General Sandip Pradhan, Joint Secretary (Sports Development) LS Singh and Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) CEO Rajesh Rajagopalan.
This year the awards function may be delayed by a few months due to the on-going pandemic. However, a final decision on the matter is still awaited.