India’s best-ever show in the recently concluded Paralympics in Paris was indeed heart-warming — a true testament to the grit and spirit of the Indian parathletes. With 29 medals — seven Golds, nine Silvers and 13 Bronzes — Indian parathletes surpassed their 19-medal haul at Tokyo Paralympics three years ago.
There were several standout performances — shooter Avani Lekhara and javelin thrower Sumit Antil defended their Gold medals. High jumper Mariyappan Thangavelu won his third successive medal with a Bronze medal; he had won a Gold in Rio and Silver in Tokyo. Sheetal Devi, the armless archer’s Bronze medal winning performance was perhaps the most viewed video on social media. Visually impaired Simran Sharma’s Bronze in the 200 metres sprint, with the help of her guide Abhay Singh, was another terrific performance on the athletics track. In para-athletics, Indian para-athletes won 17 medals in all categories, followed by para-badminton (five) and para-shooting (four). The most commendable aspect of this performance was the government and corporate support for our para-athletes. The government has announced ₹75 lakh for Gold medalists, ₹50 lakh for Silver medalists and ₹30 lakh for Bronze medalists. Mixed events athletes have been promised ₹22.5 lakh. The Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya has also promised support to the para-athletes for the 2028 Los Angeles Paralympics. The government’s Khelo India and TOPS (Target Olympic Podium Scheme) have played a key role in our para-athletes shinning at the global level.
Indian Oil has now promised monthly scholarships and medical insurance to India’s para-athletes. This should spur more corporates to step in and also provide more support through product endorsements. While we celebrate our para-athletes, their splendid performances must spur us to make our society more inclusive and disabled-friendly, especially public infrastructure, which remains woefully inadequate for the differently-abled.