Four Malayali sportspersons have secured Central government appointments through the sports quota, with the Mumbai Income Tax Department issuing their orders at Aaykar Bhavan on 14 August, even as the Kerala state government separately approved enhanced cash prizes for medal-winning athletes. The twin moves mark a rare convergence of Central and state recognition for the same pool of sporting talent.

The Four Appointments

Sandra Mol Sabu, Jilna M.V., Shyam Prasad U., and Alphonsia M. received their appointment orders from Alok Kumar, Mumbai Principal Chief Commissioner of Income Tax. The four have excelled across athletics, football, and badminton.

Sandra Mol Sabu and Alphonsia M. have been appointed as Multi-Tasking Staff, while Jilna M.V. and Shyam Prasad have been appointed as Tax Assistants.

Sandra won gold in the 4x400m mixed relay and women's 4x400m relay at the 2026 Asian U-23 Athletics Championships in China, having earlier claimed gold and silver at the 2024 Asian U-20 Athletics Championships in Dubai. Jilna won silver in the 4x100m relay at both the South Asian Senior Athletics Championships in Ranchi and the National Inter-State Senior Athletics Championships in Chennai in 2025. Alphonsia represented Kerala in the Senior Women's National Football Championship in the 2024-25 and 2025-26 seasons. Shyam Prasad won the men's doubles title at the 2023 APACS Kazakhstan International Series and finished third in men's doubles at the 2025 South Zone Inter-State Badminton Championships.

How the Recruitment Worked

The appointments stem from a drive for 97 sports-quota vacancies notified in January. The department received 3,595 applications from across sporting disciplines before selecting 97 candidates on merit and eligibility criteria.

Kerala's Enhanced Cash Rewards

The Kerala State Cabinet on Thursday approved ₹20 lakh each for Commonwealth Games long-jump silver medalist Sreeshankar Murali and para-athlete Muhammed Basil, who won silver in the men's 100m. The same amount will go to Divi Bijesh, the under-12 World Chess champion, and to Sandra Mol Sabu, who is also among the Central government appointees.

Commonwealth Games finalists Sajan Prakash and Ansa Babu will receive ₹5 lakh each, while the coaches of Sreeshankar and Basil will get ₹2 lakh each.

What the Sports Minister Said

State Sports Minister O.J. Janeesh on Thursday acknowledged that the existing prize structure — ₹5 lakh for gold, ₹3 lakh for silver, and ₹1 lakh for bronze — was inadequate and said the government had moved to revise it upward.

Notably, prize money for athletes who won medals in national and international competitions has reportedly remained pending since 2019. The state government has sanctioned ₹1.5 crore as a first instalment toward clearing those arrears — a long-overdue acknowledgement of a backlog that critics argue undermined trust in state sports patronage.

The Bigger Picture

For Kerala's athletes, recognition is now arriving on two tracks simultaneously: the Centre is providing career security through government employment, while the state is raising the financial value of podium finishes. Whether the arrears are cleared in full and the revised prize structure is sustained will determine whether this marks a genuine policy shift or a one-time gesture ahead of the Independence Day calendar.