KARACHI: Pakistan hockey team and its management will receive cash awards later this month when they come to Karachi as some organisations are to organise receptions in their honour.
Governor Sindh, Omar Associates and Bahria Town have announced rewarding them for their performance in the recent months.
These awards are likely to resolve the problems of players to a large extent as they have not been getting salaries for more than a year and a half. But PHF has yet to do anything for the players.
It is significant that those who are going to give awards to the players are not willing to give money to Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF), but want to give it directly to the players.
The PSB has announced that it would send a summary for final approval to ministry of IPC for cash awards of Green-shirts on their winning silver medals in Asian Games and Champions Trophy last year.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who is also patron in chief of PHF, will also give them cash awards as he has invited them next month after the postponement of the meeting scheduled for January 1.
GOC Major General Amir Aslam of 15 division Sialkot of Pakistan Army gave a reception in the honour of the team and the management and gave them Rs200,000.
The Major General said he expected the Green-shirts to earn more laurels for the country and revive its past glory.
Meanwhile, the national junior hockey team’s training camp has been rescheduled. It was to start in Karachi from January 15. Informed sources said that the one-month training camp is aimed at shaping up the boys for the Junior Hockey World Cup 2016.
Pakistan’s juniors’ performance was pathetic in the last World Cup as they were knocked out in the quarter-finals stage.
There are unconfirmed reports that the chief coach of national junior hockey team Manzoor-ul-Hasan is going to be replaced, but authorities concerned were not available for comment. When Manzoor was contacted, he said
he had no information about this.
The PHF has been confronting financial issues as the federal government is not ready to release funds according to its demand.