India now not just a participant in Olympics, the medal tally at London Games shows we go there to win medals

Did anyone predict a total of six medals for India in London? Before the Games began, there were all sorts of predictions on how many medals we could get, ranging from zero to nine. However , the final haul of two silver and four bronze -- the nation's best-ever at an Olympic Games -- does prove one thing: India doesn't compete to make up the numbers any more, says a report in The Times Of India, adding that when the archers flopped and the tennis stars disappeared without a trace, critics were quick to write off India's chances, wondering whether the impressive show in Beijing was just a flash in the pan.

The answer came from Gagan Narang, who fired down a bronze to open India's account and made up for the disappointing show from Beijing gold medallist Abhinav Bindra. For the second straight Olympics, India had a podium finish in the 10m air rifle event. On Sunday it ended similarly in wrestling, with Sushil Kumar upgrading his Beijing bronze to silver with a spectacular display of technique.

According to a report in The DNA,India will return with its best-ever Olympics medal tally from the London Games. If there is anything missing, it is a gold and that has been somewhat made up by two silver medals out of a total of six. The performance of the Indians is indeed creditable as the expectations were also realistic, though some might argue that Indian men should have got medals from the boxing ring and the women from the archery arena.

While shooting and wrestling led the charge with two medals each (one silver and one bronze in each of the disciplines), two other finishes on the podium were from badminton and women’s boxing. India finished 55th on the medals table, 10 rungs higher than their count at Beijing. The Indians would now leave this historic city, having doubled the three-medal tally from Beijing four years ago. However, there was a gold in Beijing, the first by an individual - Abhinav Bindra, who won it in the men’s 10m air rifle.

Meanwhile Chief minister Sheila Dikshit on Sunday announced a reward of Rs 1 crore for wrestler Sushil Kumar, who became the first Indian to win a silver medal in wrestling at the London Olympics.

In a press release issued by the Delhi government barely ten minutes after Kumar bagged the title, Dikshit congratulated Kumar on behalf of all Delhiites. "I on behalf of every Delhiite congratulate Sushil Kumar for creating history by winning the silver medal. The whole country is proud of him for through his dedication and hardwork. He has brought laurels for the country," she said.

In the meantime, Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda too announced a reward of Rs 1.5 crore for the wrestler while Sushil’s employer Railways will give Rs 75 lakh to the London Olympics silver medal winner.