Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Vijay Goel took to Twitter on Wednesday to verify the facts of an alleged goof-up by the Sports Authority of India that failed to sanction money for Para Swimming Championship in Berlin.
Replying to a Tweet of Abhinav Bindra who called the incident ‘unacceptable’, the minister maintained that he would only comment on the matter once it is verified.
According to Mail Today, para athlete Kanchanmala Pande and other five participants were forced to beg and borrow money in Berlin to meet their expenses after the government sanctioned money failed to reach them.
The Nagpur-based swimmer, who is visually impaired, has accused the Paralympic Committee of India for the alleged slip up.
She, however, along with her fellow participant Suyash Jadhav qualified for the World Championship after winning silver medals for the country in the tournament held from July 3-9.
‘I never thought I would face such problems. I had to take a loan of Rs 5 lakh so that I could participate in the tournament.I was not given any official confirmation if I will receive a reimbursement for the expense I bore. I had to pay around Rs 70,000 (£844) for the hotel and more than Rs 40,000 (£482) for food,” she informed Mail Today.
PCI vice-president Gurucharan Singh who is currently in London for the World Athletics Championship has in turn pushed the onus on the Sports Authority of India (SAI) when contacted.
“We are facing problems from with SAI regarding sanction of amount for championships. The money for Berlin tournament didn’t come on time and as the process takes around 3-4 days, we weren’t able to provide it to the swimmers,’ he was quoted as saying.