Prime Minister Tarique Rahman inaugurated the country’s first ever sports card and monthly allowance programme at his office in Tejgaon yesterday.

A total of 129 athletes from 21 disciplines have been initially named in the list.

The listed athletes received a monthly allowance of Tk 1,00,000 each yesterday.

A total of 500 athletes are to be included in the salary structure. The complete list will be declared by the first week of April.

Cricketers will not be considered for this allowance initially as they are under the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) -- the most affluent sports body in the country.

The athletes in the list will undergo a performance evaluation every four months.

At yesterday’s event, alongside allowance disbursement, several sportsmen who have recently won international prizes were honoured. Five athletes in individual disciplines received Tk 3,00,000 each while 22 members of three different champion teams received Tk 2,00,000 each.