New Delhi, Aug. 21 -- A day after it announced a trimmed-down list of national sports awardees, the sports ministry backed its decision and said awards can't be doled out on reputation alone. Only 17 athletes were named for Arjuna awards on Tuesday from the 24 recommended by the selection committee led by former Supreme Court judge Justice (retd) Arun Kumar Mishra. The shortlist was submitted at least six months back, and the ministry, after a prolonged evaluation, pruned the list. "We agree it's not the convention," a senior ministry official said. "Usually, the names forwarded by the selection panel are final, but this time we decided to cut the flab. Arjuna awards have to be earned, they can't be given on reputation." The ministry has the final say on awards and "may continue to exercise its right in future." No athlete was named for Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna, India's highest sporting honour, for 2025. For the first time since 2014, Khel Ratna will not be awarded. "We wanted to preserve the integrity of the awards. These awards can't be given for the sake of it. The committee's recommendations are not binding on the ministry." The athletes named for the Arjuna Award include badminton doubles players Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand, track and field athletes Tejaswin Shankar and Muhammed Ajmal, boxer Narender Berwal, chess Grandmasters Vidit Gujarathi and Divya Deshmukh. Gymnast Pranati Nayak, kho kho player Nirmala Bhati, polo player Padmanabh Singh, shooter Mehuli Ghosh, TT player Sutirtha Mukherjee, wrestler Sonam Malik and yogasana athlete Aarti Pal were excluded after re-evaluation. The ministry also expressed satisfaction with the ongoing badminton World Championships in the Capital. The Sports Authority of India (SAI) spent Rs.20 crore on repair work. "We took over the preparation for Worlds from the very beginning and worked towards delivering a world-class tournament. What happened during the India Open was unfortunate, and there were surely lapses on our part," the ministry official said....