HI realises mistake, to honour late World Cup winning trio

New Delhi: In a case of belated realisation of its goof-up, Hockey India has decided to honour late Surjit Singh, Shivaji Pawar and Mohinder Singh along with the rest of the 1975 World Cup winning squad at a felicitation ceremony here on Wednesday.

In a last-minute move, HI has invited families of the deceased trio who were part of India`s sole World Cup triumph till date. "The families of the late players will be here though I admit there was a small mistake on our part. We could have extended the invitation earlier," HI secretary general Narinder Batra told PTI today. "The good thing is that we have not left it for too late and manage to set things right before time. Another thing I want to say is that we did not miss out on their names deliberately," he added. Surjit`s wife Chanchal Randhawa will be present on the day, so will be Shivaji Pawar`s better half Sheela to remember the historic win in Kuala Lumpur. Representing Mohinder Singh will be his brother Satpal. Each player will be awarded a one-time payment of Rs.1,75,000. Ajit Pal Singh, the captain of the 1975 team, welcomed HI`s 11th-hour decision to commemorate the three players with the rest of the squad. "A mistake was made and I am glad it has been rectified. We should not make a big deal about it. I don`t see any scope of a controversy here," he said.