Sports Awards of India: Khel Ratna, Arjuna and Dronacharya
Exam notes on India's sports awards: the Khel Ratna, Arjuna, Dronacharya and Dhyan Chand awards, their years of institution, purposes and first winners.
By GK24 Editorial Team· Published · 4 min read
India honours its players, coaches and sports administrators through a set of national awards given by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports and conferred by the President of India at Rashtrapati Bhavan. The ceremony is traditionally held on 29 August, which is National Sports Day, the birth anniversary of the hockey wizard Major Dhyan Chand. Each award has its own purpose, its own year of institution and its own trophy, and examinations test exactly those three things.
The national sports awards at a glance
| Award | Instituted | Given for |
|---|---|---|
| Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award | 1991–92 | The most spectacular and outstanding performance by a sportsperson over a period of four years; the highest sporting honour of the country |
| Arjuna Award | 1961 | Consistently outstanding performance over four years, with qualities of leadership, sportsmanship and discipline |
| Dronacharya Award | 1985 | Coaches who have produced medal winners at international events; given in a regular and a lifetime category |
| Dhyan Chand Award | 2002 | Lifetime achievement in sports, for players who contributed even after their competitive career ended |
| Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar | 2009 | Corporate houses, sports control boards and institutions that promote sport |
| Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Trophy | 1956–57 | The university with the best overall performance in inter-university tournaments |
| Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award | 1994 | Outstanding achievement in adventure on land, at sea and in the air, and lifetime achievement |
Khel Ratna, the highest honour
The Khel Ratna was instituted in 1991 and 1992 as the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, and in August 2021 it was renamed the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award. It recognises the single most outstanding performance by a sportsperson over the four years preceding the award, so it is an award for recent excellence rather than for a whole career. The first recipient was the chess player Viswanathan Anand. The winner receives a medallion, a certificate of honour and a cash prize. Because the award sits at the top of the list, every paper that asks about Indian sports awards begins here, and the pair to remember is Anand as the first winner and Dhyan Chand as the name the award now carries.
Arjuna and Dronacharya
The Arjuna Award is the oldest of the group, started in 1961, and goes to a sportsperson who has performed consistently well for four years and has also shown leadership, a sense of discipline and the spirit of fair play. The awardee receives a bronze statuette of Arjuna, a scroll of honour and a cash prize. The Dronacharya Award, named after the teacher of the Pandavas and the Kauravas, was begun in 1985 for coaches whose trainees have won honours at international competitions; its first recipients were the wrestling coach Bhalchandra Bhaskar Bhagwat, the athletics coach Om Prakash Nambiar and the boxing coach Om Prakash Bhardwaj. The pairing of the names is easy to hold: Arjuna the pupil for the player, Dronacharya the teacher for the coach.
Awards for a lifetime and for institutions
The Dhyan Chand Award, instituted in 2002, is the lifetime achievement honour. It goes to a sportsperson who performed well in the past and, just as importantly, continued to contribute to sport after retiring, as a coach, an organiser or a promoter. Note that after the renaming of 2021 two separate awards carry the name of Dhyan Chand, one for recent excellence and one for a lifetime of service, and examiners enjoy the confusion. The Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar, begun in 2009, is not for individuals at all but for companies, boards and institutions that identify young talent, employ sportspersons or build facilities. The Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Trophy, the oldest of all, is a rolling trophy for the university that does best across inter-university tournaments in a year.
Adventure and the wider honours
The Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award, named after the Sherpa mountaineer who reached the summit of Everest with Edmund Hillary in 1953, was instituted in 1994 for feats of adventure on land, at sea and in the air, with a separate lifetime category. Beyond the sports awards proper, outstanding players also receive the civilian honours, the Padma Shri, the Padma Bhushan and the Padma Vibhushan. The highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna, has been given to a sportsperson once: the cricketer Sachin Tendulkar received it in 2014, and he remains the youngest person to be awarded it. States add their own honours as well, and the Rajya Khel Puraskar of several states appears in state level papers.
How the awards are decided
Nominations come from the national sports federations, the Indian Olympic Association, the Sports Authority of India and the state governments, and in recent years sportspersons have also been allowed to apply directly. A selection committee headed by a retired judge of the Supreme Court or a High Court, with sportspersons, journalists and administrators as members, scores the entries against the performance of the applicant at the Olympic Games, the Asian Games, the Commonwealth Games, world championships and world cups, and sends its recommendation to the ministry.
Exam Point of View
Questions from this chapter are almost always of three kinds. First, award to purpose: which award goes to a coach, which to an institution, which for lifetime achievement; the Arjuna and Dronacharya pair is the one most often tested, and the mythological cue of pupil and teacher settles it. Second, years of institution, where the sequence 1961, 1985, 1991-92 and 2002 must be fixed in order, with the Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Trophy of 1956-57 as the oldest of all. Third, name facts: Anand as the first Khel Ratna winner, the renaming of the Khel Ratna after Major Dhyan Chand in 2021, National Sports Day on 29 August, and Sachin Tendulkar as the only sportsperson with a Bharat Ratna. Do not try to memorise the cash amounts or the current year's list of awardees; the amounts have been revised and the list changes every year.
Important Facts
| Highest sporting honour | Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award, instituted 1991-92 |
|---|---|
| First Khel Ratna winner | Viswanathan Anand, chess |
| Khel Ratna renamed | August 2021, from Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna |
| Arjuna Award | Instituted 1961; bronze statuette of Arjuna |
| Dronacharya Award | Instituted 1985; for coaches |
| First Dronacharya awardees | B. B. Bhagwat, O. M. Nambiar and O. P. Bhardwaj, 1985 |
| Dhyan Chand Award | Instituted 2002; lifetime achievement |
| Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar | Instituted 2009; for institutions and companies |
| Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Trophy | Instituted 1956-57; best university |
| Tenzing Norgay Award | Instituted 1994; land, sea and air adventure |
| National Sports Day | 29 August, birth anniversary of Major Dhyan Chand |
| Conferred by | The President of India, at Rashtrapati Bhavan |
| Only sportsperson with Bharat Ratna | Sachin Tendulkar, 2014 |
Practice MCQs on this topic
Which is the highest sporting honour conferred by the Government of India?
- A.Arjuna Award
- B.Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award
- C.Dronacharya Award
- D.Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award
Show answer
Instituted in 1991 and 1992 and renamed in August 2021, it is given for the most spectacular and outstanding performance by a sportsperson over the four preceding years and stands at the top of the national sports awards.
Read the full explanation →Who was the first recipient of the Khel Ratna Award?
- A.Viswanathan Anand
- B.Leander Paes
- C.Kapil Dev
- D.Karnam Malleswari
Show answer
The correct answer is A, Viswanathan Anand, the chess grandmaster, who received the award in its very first year, 1991 and 1992, when it was still called the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award.
Read the full explanation →The Dronacharya Award is given to:
- A.Sportspersons for lifetime achievement
- B.Coaches of sportspersons
- C.Corporate houses promoting sport
- D.Universities with the best sporting record
Show answer
Instituted in 1985 and named after the teacher of the Pandavas and the Kauravas, it honours coaches whose trainees have won medals and honours at international events, and it is given in a regular category and a lifetime category.
Read the full explanation →In which year was the Arjuna Award instituted?
- A.1951
- B.1961
- C.1985
- D.1991
Show answer
The Arjuna Award is the oldest of the individual national sports awards and is given for consistently outstanding performance over four years, together with qualities of leadership, discipline and sportsmanship; the awardee receives a bronze statuette of Arjuna, a scroll and a cash prize.
Read the full explanation →National Sports Day, on which the sports awards are traditionally conferred, is observed on:
- A.29 August
- B.14 November
- C.23 January
- D.5 September
Show answer
The national sports awards are conferred by the President at Rashtrapati Bhavan on this day.
Read the full explanation →The Dhyan Chand Award, instituted in 2002, is given for:
- A.The best performance in a single season
- B.Lifetime achievement in sports
- C.Excellence in coaching
- D.Promotion of sport by an institution
Show answer
The Dhyan Chand Award goes to a sportsperson who performed with distinction in the past and has continued to serve the game after retiring, whether by coaching, organising or promoting it.
Read the full explanation →The Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award is given for achievement in:
- A.Adventure on land, sea and air
- B.Chess and mind sports
- C.Para sports
- D.Rural and indigenous games
Show answer
The award was instituted in 1994 and is named after Tenzing Norgay, the Sherpa mountaineer who stood on the summit of Everest with Edmund Hillary in 1953; it has separate categories for land adventure such as mountaineering, water adventure such as sailing and rafting, air adventure such as skydiving and…
Read the full explanation →The Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Trophy is awarded to:
- A.The best university in inter-university tournaments
- B.The state hosting the National Games
- C.The best school in the Khelo India Games
- D.The highest medal winning athlete of the year
Show answer
Instituted in 1956 and 1957 and named after India's first education minister, it is a rolling trophy given to the university with the best overall performance across the inter-university competitions of the year, and it is the oldest of the national sports honours.
Read the full explanation →The Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar is conferred on:
- A.Individual athletes
- B.Coaches and physical trainers
- C.Corporate entities and institutions that promote sport
- D.Sports journalists
Show answer
Instituted in 2009, it recognises companies, public sector undertakings, sports control boards and other bodies that identify and nurture young talent, employ sportspersons, build and run facilities or support sport through corporate social responsibility.
Read the full explanation →National sports awards in India are administered by which ministry?
- A.Ministry of Home Affairs
- B.Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports
- C.Ministry of Culture
- D.Ministry of Education
Show answer
It invites nominations through the national federations, the Indian Olympic Association, the Sports Authority of India and the state governments, places them before a selection committee headed by a retired judge, and arranges the ceremony at which the President confers the awards.
Read the full explanation →Who is the only sportsperson so far to have been awarded the Bharat Ratna?
- A.Milkha Singh
- B.Sachin Tendulkar
- C.Major Dhyan Chand
- D.P. T. Usha
Show answer
The correct answer is B, Sachin Tendulkar, the cricketer, who received the Bharat Ratna in 2014, soon after retiring from international cricket, and who remains the youngest person ever to be given the highest civilian honour of the country.
Read the full explanation →In 2021 the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award was renamed after which sportsperson?
- A.Major Dhyan Chand
- B.Milkha Singh
- C.K. D. Jadhav
- D.Dhanraj Pillay
Show answer
In August 2021 the government renamed the award the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award in memory of the hockey player who won Olympic gold with India in 1928, 1932 and 1936 and whose birthday, 29 August, is National Sports Day.
Read the full explanation →Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between the Khel Ratna and the Dhyan Chand Award?
The Khel Ratna is given for the most outstanding performance in the four years before the award, so it rewards recent excellence and is the highest sporting honour. The Dhyan Chand Award, instituted in 2002, is for lifetime achievement and service to sport after a player's competitive career has ended.
Why is the coaches' award named after Dronacharya?
Dronacharya was the teacher who trained the Pandava and Kaurava princes in archery and warfare in the Mahabharata. Since the award honours the coach rather than the player, his name was chosen, just as the player's award carries the name of his most famous pupil, Arjuna.
Can a para athlete receive these awards?
Yes. Para athletes are considered for the Khel Ratna, the Arjuna Award and the other national sports awards on the same footing as other sportspersons, and several have received them for performances at the Paralympic Games and world championships.
Who confers the national sports awards and where?
The President of India confers them at a ceremony in Rashtrapati Bhavan, traditionally on 29 August, National Sports Day. The awards themselves are administered by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, which processes the nominations.
How are the winners selected?
National sports federations, the Indian Olympic Association, the Sports Authority of India and state governments send nominations, and sportspersons may also apply directly. A committee headed by a retired judge scores the entries on performance at the Olympic, Asian and Commonwealth Games, world championships and world cups.
Sources
- National Sports Awards: schemes and eligibility — Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports
- Scheme of Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar — Department of Sports, Government of India
