Which of the following is the award instituted by the Government of India to recognise outstanding achievement in national sports?

Introduction / Context:
India honours excellence in different fields through a wide range of awards. Some are civilian honours, some recognise bravery, while others celebrate achievements in arts and sports. This question focuses on the national sports system and asks which award specifically recognises outstanding achievement in national sports. Knowing the purpose of each major Indian award is an important part of general knowledge and competitive exam preparation.

Given Data / Assumptions:

The award is given by the Government of India.
The focus is on recognising outstanding achievement in national sports.
Four different awards are listed, each with different purposes.
Exactly one of these awards is meant primarily for sporting achievements.

Concept / Approach:
The key idea here is to match each award name with its field. The Arjuna Award is a national sports award given for outstanding performance in sports and games. The Ashok Chakra is a gallantry award for bravery away from the battlefield. The Dada Saheb Phalke Awards honour lifetime contribution to Indian cinema. The Padma Shri is a civilian award recognising contributions across various fields, not just sports. Therefore, among the options, only the Arjuna Award fits the description of an award for outstanding achievement in national sports.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Recall the purpose of the Arjuna Award. It is given by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports to sportspersons for outstanding performance in national sports events and international competitions. Step 2: Consider the Ashok Chakra, which is known as a peacetime gallantry award for acts of bravery, not a sports award. Step 3: Recall that the Dada Saheb Phalke Awards focus on outstanding contributions to Indian cinema and film, not on sports achievements. Step 4: Remember that the Padma Shri is one of the civilian honours for contributions to a wide variety of fields including literature, arts, science and social work, but it is not a dedicated sports award. Step 5: Based on these associations, conclude that the Arjuna Award is the only award among the options that is specifically meant to recognise outstanding achievement in national sports.

Verification / Alternative check:
As a verification step, note that the Arjuna Award was instituted in 1961 to honour sportspersons for consistently outstanding performance at the national and international level. It is widely known in news coverage of National Sports Awards. When lists of awardees are published each year, the Arjuna Award appears as the main sports recognition for players across various disciplines. The other awards in the options are covered in different contexts, such as Republic Day honours or film festivals, confirming that they belong to other domains and not to national sports recognition in a dedicated manner.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Ashok Chakra: This is India's highest peacetime gallantry award given for acts of bravery, self sacrifice and courage away from the battlefield, not a sports award.
Dada Saheb Phalke Awards: These awards honour lifetime contribution to Indian cinema and are considered the highest award in film, so they are unrelated to sports recognition.
Padma Shri: This is one of the national civilian honours and can be given in many fields, but it is not specifically designed as an award for outstanding performance in sports and games.

Common Pitfalls:
A frequent mistake is to confuse the Arjuna Award with other sports honours such as the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna or with civilian awards that sometimes go to sportspersons. Another pitfall is to rely only on memory of hearing an award name in the news without clearly remembering its category. To avoid this, always link each award to its core purpose: Arjuna Award for sports performance, Padma awards as general civilian honours, Ashok Chakra for gallantry and Dada Saheb Phalke for cinema.

Final Answer:
The award instituted by the Government of India to recognise outstanding achievement in national sports is the Arjuna Award.