The Paralympic Committee of India (PCI) is the body responsible for selecting athletes to represent India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

 at the Paralympic Games

Paralympic Games

The Paralympic Games are a major international multi-sport event where athletes with a physical disability compete; this includes athletes with mobility disabilities, amputations, blindness, and Cerebral Palsy. There are Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which are held immediately following their...

 and other international athletic meets and for managing the Indian teams at the events.

The organisation was founded in 1992 as the Physically Handicapped Sports Federation of India.

History

In 1992 M. Mahadeva and others started an organization at national level for the promotion and development of sports for the physically challenged and named it the PHYSICALLY HANDICAPPED SPORTS FEDERATION OF INDIA. This was registered in 1994 with the registrar of co-operative societies, Bangalore, Karnataka. Its first President was Rathan Singh. The objectives of this organization were to promote sports for the disabled in India. Its aims included: identifying disabled athletes throughout India, imparting necessary training to them and preparing them to take part in State, National and International Sports meets.

The organization affiliated itself to the International Paralympic Committee

International Paralympic Committee

The International Paralympic Committee is an international non-profit organisation and the global governing body for the Paralympic Movement. The IPC organizes the Paralympic Games and functions as the international federation for nine sports...

, as well as the International Wheelchair and Amputee Sports Federation; the FESPIC Federation, covering countries in the Far East and South Pacific regions; and the Asian Paralympic Committee.

The Paralympic Committee of India was given public authority status by the RTI Act of 2005.

Aims & Objectives of Paralympic Committee

• To promote and contribute to the development of sport opportunities and competitions, from the start to elite level.
• To develop opportunities for athletes with a severe disability in sport at all levels and in all structures.
• To promote the self-governance of each Paralympic sport federation as an integral part of the national sport movement, whilst at all times safeguarding and preserving its own identity.
• To ensure the spirit of fair play prevails, the health risk of the athletes is managed and fundamental ethical principles are upheld.

Criticism

The 2009 World Wheelchair and Amputee Games, with 1000 athletes from across 43 countries, were held in Bangalore, India, organized by the PCI. The PCI won the bid to host the World Games in 2007, but the work on the venue where the Games were to be held, started only a week before the Games opened. As a result, toilets and event venues were inaccessible for wheelchairs during the Games. There were poor transport accessibility, and a high number of complaints. A number of teams boycotted the closing ceremony. The handling of the World Games made allegations of corruption between PCI and the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports stronger.

In May 2010 a group of Paralympic athletes claimed that camps organized by the PCI are organised without equipment and qualified coaches. Javed Abidi

Javed Abidi

Javed Abidi is the director of the National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People in India, and the founder of the Disability Rights Group....

, director of the National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP), claimed the PCI were denying athletes funds.

Structure

The President of the PCI is Ratan Singh. The Vice President is his son, Amar Singh. Amar's son, Raghavendra Singh is an escort for disabled sports teams. An escort accompanies teams to other countries. Every PCI office bearer is listed as an escort for Paralympic athletes. Treasurer Shankar Iyer for example, is an escort for the athletics and volleyball teams, and manager for the wheelchair fencing team. Also wifes or friends of office bearers are taken along as escorts. This is of little help to the athletes with a disability.