Bharat Ratna

After a career of 24 years as a cricketer, the god of cricket has eventually got the ultimate honour, the Bharat Ratna. It is great news that Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar’s sparkling career has ended on a very high note. Dr. C.N.R. Rao also deserves our compliments on winning the highest civilian award.

M. Rahul Reddy,

Anantapur

Sachin bid goodbye to cricket in style. He has been a source of inspiration to youngsters, and a role model to the current crop of cricket players. His final speech was memorable. His sound technique with the bat, deep concentration on the field and unfailing attitude made him a cricketer for all generations. He truly deserves the Bharat Ratna.

C.K.S. Maniam &

Jayanthi Maniam,

Mumbai

The government deserves to be complimented on its finest gesture of conferring the Bharat Ratna on Sachin, one of the finest sons of India. He stood tall even when the game of cricket was being tarnished through match-fixing and betting. The fact that he scored most of his runs abroad in testing conditions is a reflection of his enormous talent.

Balasubramaniam Pavani,

Secunderabad

The Bharat Ratna is a perfect send-off present to Sachin, whose illustrious career spanned 24 years, making him an inspiration for an entire generation of cricketers. There have been demands for a long time that he be conferred the honour. It was the nation’s overwhelming demand that the government confer the Bharat Ratna on Sachin.

Ettirankandath Krishnadas,

Palakkad

If excellence in sports can be a criterion in awarding the Bharat Ratna, what about giving it posthumously to the hockey wizard, Dhyan Chand, as well?

G.N. Gokulaprabukumar,

Gobichettipalayam

While I congratulate Professor C.N.R. Rao and Sachin Tendulkar for being awarded the Bharat Ratna, it is disappointing to see the social media almost neglecting Professor Rao and his achievements. There seemed to be more tweets, comments, likes and shares for Tendulkar. We do need to be a little more balanced.

K.B. Dessai,

Margao

Congratulations to Tendulkar and Professor Rao. The government should similarly recognise other legendary sportsmen and scientists. One can think of Dhyan Chand, Ramanathan Krishnan and Viswanathan Anand in sports, and Satyendra Nath Bose, G.N. Ramachandran, Srinivasa Ramanujan and Yellapragada Subbarao in the field of science.

S.S. Vasan,

Porton Down, U.K.

While acknowledging that Sachin deserves wholesome praise, this still raises the important issue of cricket and cricket players getting unwarranted attention in India and overshadowing other sports. Following Professor C.N.R. Rao’s recognition, the media can play a key role in fostering flagging interest in science by regularly publishing inspiring and interesting stories from the lives of great scientists.

Akshat Agarwal,

Haldwani