Nikki and Salima to get land plots in Ranchi

Ranchi: Indian women hockey players Nikki Pradhan and Salima Tete will formally get land parcels in the upscale Harmu Housing Colony in Ranchi for building their homes. Chief minister Hemant Soren will hand over the documents to the duo at a formal ceremony at Project Building on Wednesday.
Pradhan (31), a resident of Khunti district, and Tete (25) from Simdega district will be handed plots of 3,750 square feet each right next to the Kadru Main Road, the state housing board said on Tuesday.
In 2005, Indian cricketer and Ranchi lad Mahendra Singh Dhoni was awarded a plot of land for building a home by the then Arjun Munda govt. In 2015, archer Deepika Kumari was also given 4,500 sqft plot by the sports department in Harmu.
"The announcement had been made by the CM sometime last year and we had finished the identification process for the plots before last year's assembly election," housing board chairman Sanjay Lal Paswan told TOI. "The plots would be handed over to the players as gift deeds. They cannot sell it off or use it for commercial purposes," he added.
Sandeep Kumar, state sports director, said the duo are being given land plots to recognise their contribution towards the women's national hockey team over the years. "Both these players hail from remote tribal villages in Khunti and Simdega districts and grew up in poverty before making names for themselves," he said.
Tete, who is the current captain of the Indian women's hockey team, was conferred the Arjuna Award earlier this month.