Mementos to PM sold, ₹16cr raised for Clean Ganga

NEERAJ CHOPRA’S JAVELIN FETCHED ₹1.5 CRORE IN THE DIGITAL AUCTION, OFFICIALS SAID

NEW DELHI: India’s Olympic gold medallist Neeraj Chopra’s javelin fetched ₹1.5 crore, as several mementos presented as gifts to Prime Minister Narendra Modi were sold over three rounds of auction conducted to coincide with his 20 years in political office since his first term as Gujarat chief minister began in 2001.

All the proceeds of the auction will go to the mission to clean the Ganga. According to officials, a total of ₹16 crore was collected for over 1,300 items auctioned.

“The third round of e-auction of prestigious gifts and mementos presented to Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi was held from 17th September to 7th October, 2021 through the web portal www.pmmementos.gov.in. The proceeds of the e-auction go to the Namami Gange Mission. Shri Narendra Modi is the first Prime Minister of India to auction all the gifts he has received for the noble cause of conserving and rejuvenating the lifeline of the country - the Holy river Ganga,” a government statement said.

The bidding for some of the items was continuing until the time of going to print.

“1,348 mementos were put up for e-auction in this third round, which has evoked a huge interest among the public, who enthusiastically placed bids to get an opportunity to own a valuable piece of history. The highlight items of this round of e-auction included the sports memorabilia of the medal winning Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games and the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games; models of Ayodhya Ram Mandir; Varanasi’s Rudraksh auditorium and many other precious and interesting collectibles. More than 8,600 bids were received for the items,” the statement said.

Other items such as the decorative mace, a replica of the Statue of Unity, and a Charkha and a bell received the highest bids in terms of bid value as compared to their base prices.

“Maximum number of bids were received by the sculpture of Sardar Patel (140 bids), wooden Ganesha (117 bids)... The favourite picks in terms of the highest bid value were Neeraj Chopra’s javelin (₹1.5 cr), autographed fencing sabre of Bhavani Devi (₹1.25 cr), Sumit Antil’s javelin (₹1.002 cr), Angavastra autographed by the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic contingent (₹1 cr) and Lovlina Borgohain’s boxing gloves (₹91 lakh).”