Mumbai : IndusInd Bank believes in the inclusive and transformational power of sports. The Bank, through ‘IndusInd for Sports’ – its non-banking sports vertical supports programmes, under the Corporate Social Responsibility Act. 2013, that straddle the worlds of women athletes, able-bodied rural champions as well as elite para-athletes, with the sole purpose of bringing out the best in each of them.
As a testament to its effort at encouraging athletes to compete at the highest level, IndusInd Bank is proud to announce that 21 of its supported para-athletes who are part of the Bank’s ‘Para Champions Programme’ (In collaboration with the GoSports Foundation) will represent the country at the 2020 Summer Paralympic Games to be held in Tokyo between August 24 – September 5, 2021.
These 21 athletes comprise nearly 40% of the overall Indian contingent who will compete with the best in the world across disciplines such as Javelin throw, Shooting, Swimming, Archery, Badminton, High jump and more.
Speaking on the qualifications, Mr. Sanjeev Anand, Head – Commercial & Rural Banking and In-charge of IndusInd for Sports, IndusInd Bank said, “It is a matter of great pride to witness 21 of the Bank’s supported Para Champions represent India at the Summer Paralympic Games in Tokyo. In fact, 40% of the overall contingent that will represent the country are part of this programme, which itself, is a momentous achievement. We shall now wait to see them take centre stage with some of the best para-athletes across the globe, and wish them the very best for all their endeavours thereafter. Through our partnership with the GoSports Foundation, we aim to keep supporting all our para-athletes by providing them with necessary resources in their quest to bring more laurels for the country. We do hope that the initiative goes on to inspire many others by bridging social barriers, building social acceptance and creating circles of excellence in the years to come.”
The following para-athletes (supported by the Bank) will represent India at 2020 Summer Paralympic Games:
| Sr. No. | Athlete | Sport | Sr. No. | Athlete | Sport |
| 1. | Sumit | Para -Javelin Throw | 12. | Deepender Singh | Para -Shooting |
| 2. | Varun Singh Bhati | Para – Javelin Throw | 13. | Ekta Bhyan | Para – Club Throw |
| 3. | Manish Narwal | Para -Shooting | 14. | Avani Lekhara | Para -Shooting |
| 4. | Suyash Jadhav | Para – Swimming | 15. | Parul Parmar | Para – Badminton |
| 5. | Rakesh Kumar | Para – Archery | 16. | Pramod Bhagat | Para – Badminton |
| 6. | Sandeep Chaudhary | Para – Javelin Throw | 17. | Tarun Dhillon | Para – Badminton |
| 7. | Sharad Kumar | Para – High Jump | 18. | Rampal Chahar | Para – High Jump |
| 8. | Amit Kumar Saroha | Para – Club Throw | 19. | Dharambir | Para – Club Throw |
| 9. | Jyoti Baliyan | Para – Archery | 20. | Jaideep | Para – Powerlifting |
| 10. | Manoj Sarkar | Para – Badminton | 21. | Suhas Yathiraj | Para – Badminton |
| 11. | Niranjan Mukundan | Para – Swimming |
About the Para Champions Programme:
Launched in the financial year 2015-2016 in partnership with the GoSports Foundation, with an objective to support para-athletes across various sports disciplines. The programme currently supports 43 para-athletes across 7 disciplines from 14 states across the country by helping them fulfil their nutrition, fitness & conditioning, medical support as well as domestic & international training requirements. The programme also takes care of expenses incurred towards coaching, competition fee, sports science, daily living expenses, equipment & gear, apparel, mentorship, among others. This programme is a stunning example of what diversity and inclusion through sports should look like. The narrative of para-sports has moved forward ever since the Rio Paralympics, and now entering its sixth term, the programme is also in alignment with several objectives of the SDGs to ensure sustainability and larger impact. Under this programme, the para-athletes have won a total of 615 medals until June 2021.
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