India’s sporting legacy witnessed a proud moment as Shri Harvinder Singh, a para-archer from Haryana, was awarded the Padma Shri 2025 for his groundbreaking achievements in Sports. He is the first Indian para-archer to receive this national civilian honour, marking a milestone in India’s Paralympic history.
Singh, who hails from a small village in Kaithal district, lost mobility in his left leg due to a medical error in childhood. However, he transformed adversity into achievement, discovering archery during his university days at Punjabi University, Patiala in 2012.
His journey has been both inspirational and record-setting:
- Bronze Medal at Tokyo 2020 Paralympics, India’s first-ever Paralympic medal in archery
- Gold Medal at the Paris 2024 Paralympics, winning the men’s recurve open event with a historic 6–0 finish
- Gold at the 2018 Asian Para Games in Jakarta
In January 2025, he was conferred the Padma Shri at Rashtrapati Bhavan by President Droupadi Murmu, with his proud family in attendance. The moment symbolized the culmination of years of relentless training, self-belief, and quiet determination.
Back home, Harvinder was felicitated by Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, who praised him as a “real-life hero who overcame odds and made the country proud on the global stage.”
