P. C. Chandra Puraskaar, the annual national award from the P. C. Chandra Group, was conferred upon India’s most iconic boxer MC Mary Kom on 30th April. This was the 30th edition of the Annual Award. Mary Kom received the felicitation in the presence of Chief Guest, legendary Billiards World Champion Geet Sethi, Shri A.K. Chandra, Managing Director, P.C. Chandra Group and Mr. Suvro Chandra, Joint Managing Director, P.C.Chandra Jewellers at Science City Auditorium, Kolkata. The award ‘P.C. Chandra Puraskaar’ carries an honorarium of Rs. 20 lakhs which is tax exempt.
Chungneijang Mary Kom Hmangte, popularly known as MC Mary Kom, has been one of India’s leading sporting superstars over the last two decades. Be it her six women’ world championship titles or the bronze medal from the London 2012 Olympic Games, there is barely any accolade to elude this boxing legend. Throughout her career, Kom has been somewhat a path-breaker with a career full of firsts in her kitty, making her an inspiration for numerous women across many different sports in India.
P.C. Chandra Group introduced this award ceremony in 1993 as a tribute to their founding father, late Shri Purna Chandra Chandra. P. C. Chandra Puraskaar has always recognized people from various walks of life, who have achieved great heights in their respective fields like Shri. Manna De (1993) followed by Professor U R Rao (1994), Shri Sunil M Gavaskar (1995), Smt P.T. Usha (2004), Shri Mrinal Sen (2008), Gulzaar Saab (1997), Ustad Bismillah Khan Saheb (2002), Smt. Anju Bobby George (2007), Shri Sourav Ganguly (2011), Smt Hema Malini (2013), Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia (2014), Dr. K. Radhakrishnan (2015), Grandmaster Viswanathan Anand (2016), Noble Laureate Kailash Satyarthi Ji (2017), Dr. Devi Shetty (2019), Shri Kapil Dev (2021), Ustad Amjad Ali Khan etc. This year is the 30th chapter of the Puraskaar. The recipient list of P. C. Chandra Puraskaar has some of the most illustrious achievers from our country, each with outstanding contributions in their respective fields of art, culture, entertainment, sports etc.
During interaction with the press, MC Mary Kom said “I am touched by the value system of PC Chandra family. All members have respect, care and love for each other. They are blessed. Having a supportive family can help you to get all success in life”. About her future plan Mary shared, “I am recovering from severe injury. I am determined to fight again. If I don’t get chance because of my age then I also can play professional boxing. But I will not quit.”
Speaking on this occasion, Shri Suvro Chandra, Joint Managing Director, P.C. Chandra Jewellers said, “Our annual award ceremony in reminiscence of our founding father late Shri Purna Chandra Chandra gives us the opportunity to honour veteran and multifaceted legends of our country. This year we feel extremely honored to be able to felicitate one of the favourite daughters of our nation. She has succeeded to fulfil her passion for boxing breaking many social barriers and often fought through them with great conviction. My heartfelt thanks and gratitude also go to all notable dignitaries who have graced the occasion. We wish to take this legacy of P.C. Chandra Group forward, celebrating excellence.”