Ambiguity set to go, Haryana okays policy for climbers
Sushil Manav
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, January 31
The Haryana Government today approved a policy for mountaineers from the state who scale any of the top 10 mountain peaks of the world, including Mount Everest, thereby putting an end to confusion in this area.
The Cabinet, which met under Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar in New Delhi, today took a decision to give cash reward of Rs 5 lakh and a Grade C Sports Gradation Certificate which will help them secure government jobs under the sports quota. Till now, there was no clear policy for mountaineers in Haryana which led to discriminatory appointments and a plethora of court cases by aspirants.
In 2010, then Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda had rewarded mountaineer Mamta Sodha with a cash reward of Rs 21 lakh and the post of DSP in Haryana Police when she returned home after scaling Mount Everest.
Prompted, a number of youths started scaling Mount Everest and in the next three years, more than a dozen youth scaled the mountain peak in the hope of the coveted police job and cash award.
However, another woman constable, Anita Kundu, who had successfully climbed the mountain peak in 2012 was not given any cash award and she had to run from pillar to post for promotion as a sub-inspector.
Witnessing a sudden rush to summit the Mount Everest after Sodha, the then government amended its policy in 2013 to give a one-time cash award of Rs 5 lakh to those who climb the Everest.
The new sports policy of 2015, however, was silent on the issue of cash award.
In 2015, four climbers approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court for a reward similar to that of Sodha, six others moved the court in 2016 and four more climbers moved the High Court in 2017 and 2018.
Some of them got jobs (sub-inspector) in Haryana Police, while some of the petitions are still pending.
Claiming that the policy approved today would put an end to the uncertainty over this issue, OP Singh, an ADGP in Haryana Police and Principal Secretary, Sports Department, Haryana, said that in all 19 claims were made by mountaineers before the state government till 2018.
Rs 5-lakh Cash reward
State to give cash reward of Rs5L, Grade C Sports Gradation Certificate to mountaineers who scale any of the top 10 peaks of the world, including the Everest
Prompted by court cases
Till now, there was no policy for mountaineers in Haryana, leading to discriminatory appointments and a plethora of court cases. Punjab too doesn’t have a policy
