Nagaland govt announces Rs 1.5 cr award for Paralympics bronze medalist Sema

Dimapur: The Nagaland government on Saturday announced a cash reward of Rs 1.5 crore for Hokato Hotozhe Sema who won bronze medal in the Men's F57 shot put event at the Paris Paralympics Games on Friday, with a career-best throw of 14.65 metre.

“We're proud & joyous for Mr. Hokato Hotozhe Sema on winning Bronze

Rio said he was happy to announce a cash reward of Rs 1.5 crore to Sema for being the first Olympic medalist from Nagaland.

He added that the state government would recommend his name to the Government of India to bestow him with the Arjuna Award. Rio also said he would take up with the Indian army and ministry of defence for his promotion as an extraordinary case not only for his Olympic and Asian Games achievements but also for his gallant service to the nation.

Sema, 40, also won a bronze medal in the Asian Para Games 2022 and a silver medal in the Morocco Grand Prix in 2022.

He finished 4th in the 2024 World Championship and is currently ranked 7th in the world.

Sema, a Havildar with 9 Assam Regiment, lost his left leg in a landmine blast during a counter-insurgency operation at the LOC in Jammu and Kashmir in 2002