Punjab govt to give job to former hockey player currently working as 'Palledar'

Chandigarh: Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Thursday said a former hockey player, Paramjeet, who currently works as a labourer, will be given a job by his government as a coach in the sports department.

Mann tweeted the video of the meeting with Paramjeet, 30, where he said he works as a 'palledar', a labour work that includes loading and unloading rice and wheat sacks from trucks, at the Faridkot mandi.

During his interaction, the chief minister said that Paramjeet will be recruited as a hockey coach in the sports department and soon formalities in this regard will be completed.

On being asked whether the earlier government took note of his plight, the ex-hockey player replied, "No, did not get any response".

Mann said that it is our duty to respect the players.

Paramjeet also told Mann that he wants to make his son a hockey player but it seems impossible given his poor financial condition.

"You will get a good environment to work," Mann told him while adding "we have to make Punjab and country No 1 in sports... Hockey is our traditional game and Punjab is known as hockey nursery".

Earlier, he was part of the Sports Authority of India and Punjab team and won medals in several hockey tournaments, Paramjeet said.

However, a few years ago, he suffered an injury in his left hand which kept him away from the game for a long time and affected his hockey career.

Because of his injury, he started working as a "palledar" a few years ago.