Table Tennis Federation of India announces financial assistance for COVID-hit players and coaches

New Delhi: The Table Tennis Federation of India on Friday announced financial assistance to past and present India players and coaches who have been hit by COVID-19. The decision was taken at TTFI’s executive board meeting earlier this week. “We will be helping all India players (top 16) who are affected by COVID-19. Rs 1 lakh will be provided to someone who is on oxygen support, Rs 2 lakh for seriously ill and Rs 3 lakh to the family in case of death,” MP Singh, former secretary and TTFI advisor, told PTI. “All coaches who have been with the Indian team are also covered under this initiative. “These are challenging times for everyone and this is the least we can do for the affected players and coaches,” he added. Indian table tennis has coped with the death of two former players because of COVID-19 in the past two months. Former international Suhas Kulkarni (68) and Arjuna award-winning legend V Chandrasekhar (64) passed away after battling the dreaded infection. None of the current players have so far reported being affected by the raging pandemic. Singh added that TTFI will start working on the schedule for national events after the COVID situation in the country improves.