Paralympics: Tamil Nadu announces Rs 2-cr reward for gold medallist Mariyappan
Mumbai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Saturday announced a cash prize of Rs 2-crore for Rio Paralympics gold medal winner Mariyappan Thangavelu .
"I am very happy to inform you that I have decided that the Government of Tamil Nadu will award you a cash prize of Rs 2-crore on par with Olympic Gold Medal winners from Tamil Nadu," Jayalalithaa said in her congratulatory letter to Mariyappan.
The Chief Minister said she was delighted to learn that he has won a gold medal at the Paralympics.
"I understand that this is the first time an Indian has won a gold medal in the High Jump event in the Paralympics," she said.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also congratulated Mariyappan for winning the gold and Varun Singh Bhati for bagging bronze medal in men's T42 high jump at the Paralympic Games at Rio.
Hearty congratulations to Mariyappan Thangavelu for winning gold in men's high jump and Varun Singh Bhati for winning bronze #Paralympics
— Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) September 10, 2016
Thangavelu won the gold with his best jump of 1.89 metres, while Varun clinched the bronze medal with a jump of 1.86m.
