Chandigarh, Sep 13 (PTI) Punjab Sports Minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer on Tuesday said the state government will start scheme, in which it will give monthly stipend to sportspersons who bag first three positions in national competitions.

The state government will also launch a health insurance scheme for sportspersons.

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Hayer gave the information while addressing the media here.

He said senior players, who bag first three positions in sports events at national-level championships will be given Rs 8,000 per month for one year.

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Similarly, junior players will be given Rs 6,000 per month, said Hayer.

He said the stipend will continue if they again win medals after one year.

He claimed Punjab is the first state in the country which will give stipend to sportspersons.

The Sports Department will soon hire 220 new coaches to boost sports activity in the state, he said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)