Amit Shah honours Olympic champion Mirabai Chanu

New Delhi: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday felicitated Olympic champion Mirabai Chanu for bringing laurels to the country in weightlifting. The 27-year-old sportsperson, appointed as additional superintendent of police in her home state Manipur after the recent win, was honoured during the 51st raising day celebrations of the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D), a central government think tank. Shah presented the athlete with a shawl and memento. He said Chanu brought honour to the country by winning a medal at the Tokyo Olympic games and is now a proud member of the police force. "I thank her for her hard work and dedication," the home minister added. "This is a small gesture by BPR&D to welcome her (Saikhom Mirabai Chanu) to the fraternity on behalf of the Indian police," an official statement said on Friday. Chanu had clinched a silver medal in the 49kg category weightlifting that opened India's account at the recently-concluded Tokyo Olympics. India won a total of seven medals at these games. The home minister also gave away trophies and medals for excellence in training to winner states/UTs and central police organisations and forces, and seven authors who wrote on policing subjects in Hindi. The BPR&D, an organisation under the Ministry of Home Affairs, was founded in August, 1970.