A Chandigarh University (CU) student Pawan Kumar Sehrawat, the captain of the Indian Kabaddi team, was on Monday (9 January) bestowed with the prestigious Arjuna Award, the second-highest athletic honor in India.
Pawan received the prestigious Arjuna Award from President Droupadi Murmu for his brilliant contribution to Indian Kabaddi. Pawan, under whose leadership the Indian Kabaddi team returned with a Gold in Asian Games 2023 after eight years (2014), was awarded the honour at a glittering ceremony held at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Thanking the Chandigarh University for its role in helping him in pursuing excellence in Kabaddi, Pawan said, “The University has always encouraged students towards sports, due to which they have been able to follow their dreams”.
“Facilities and guidance provided by Chandigarh University have played a great role in my performance in the Asian Games 2023,” he added.
Congratulating Pawan Kumar on being honoured with Arjuna Award, Chandigarh University Chancellor Satnam Singh Sandhu said, “Pawan Sehrawat has not only made Chandigarh University proud of his achievement but has also brought laurels for India at the international level.
Under his captainship, India has won Gold medals at the Asian Games 2023 in Hangzhou, China, South Asian Games held in Kathmandu, Nepal in 2019, and Asian Kabaddi Championship, in Busan, South Korea 2023.”
“Chandigarh University is committed to promote the next generation of sportspersons for the nation. It is a matter of great pride that in the last Asian Games, 22 players of Chandigarh University (3.36% of 653 sportspersons in Indian contingent), the highest number of players from any university, participated and 10 players won medals in different sports for India,” he added.
Pawan, who hails originally from Delhi, is a student of MA English- first year at Chandigarh University. A raider, 27-year-old Pawan plays for the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) team Telugu Titans. He made history by becoming the most expensive player in PKL history, till now. He was bagged by Telugu Titans for a whopping Rs 2.60 Crore.
The Arjuna Award,is given for demonstrating leadership, sportsmanship, and discipline along with good performance over the course of the preceding four years.
The Union Sports Ministry in December had declared nominees for the annual sports awards, confirming the prestigious Khel Ratna honour for badminton players Satwik Sairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty and the Arjuna award for 26 sports persons.