Prez Patil meets Men in Blue
President Pratibha Devisingh Patil on Sunday felicitated the World Cup winning Indian team here at the Raj Bhavan even as top politicians of the country joined the never-ending party of the team’s dramatic victory on Saturday night in Mumbai.
It also rains awards, gifts and monetary impetus for the winning members of the team from the various state governments.
The team on Sunday in a convoy reached the Raj Bhavan in Mumbai to be felicitated by the President who earlier congratulated the Indian Cricket Team and in her message to Mahendra Singh Dhoni, said:””The road to success has been long and hard. You and your team were tested at every stage.”
“All of you truly deserve the thanks of a billion plus Indians today,” the President said.
The President shook hands with every member of the Indian team, including Sachin and a tonsured captain M S Dhoni, as the shutterbugs clicked.
She was accompanied by Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chauhan and state governor K Sankaranarayanan as the cricketers were all smiles basking in the Saturday night glory.
The top politicians of the country were effusive in praising the team.
While Congress supremo Sonia Gandhi threw caution to winds and joined the revellers on the streets of Delhi Saturday night, his political rival of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) L K Advani said it was one of the happiest moments for India.
“In the 60 to 70 years I have seen many happy moments, but never seen such happiness and joy. It was never seen before,” Advani said.
Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi saidi: “The whole of India is celebrating today. The youths of India yesterday held our heads high.”
He said two players in the squad – Yusuf Pathan and Munaf Patel- are from Gujarat and he would confer them the Ekalavya awards, the highest sporting honour of the state.
Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit was effusive as well.
“India stands high now in the world owing to them. I cant explain my feelings in words. Four Delhi players will be given Rs 1 core each and M S Dhoni gets Rs 2 crore because he captained the team.”
“He is not only a good player but also a matured and experienced person,” she said.
The Punjab government, meanwhile, has announced Rs 1 crore each for Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh.
A wait of 28 years ended on Saturday when in a thriller of a match a 1.21 billion people of India forget their personal balance sheet of life to erupt in collective joy of a nation united by one religion-cricket.
It was a fairy tale end to a wait for decades as India kept its tryst with the World Cup win after 1983 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
A wave of emotions overflowed, fireworks lit up the sky and tears of joy rolled as Indian skipper M S Dhoni hit a massive over boundary to ensure India bring back the World Cup to the Subcontinent.
India parties again after close to three decades.
The entire stadium roared with joy as the magical winning score of 277 runs for the loss of four wickets was reached by Dhoni (91*) and Yuvraj Singh (21*).