Padma Shri Deepa Malik

Khel Ratna & Arjuna Award; First Indian Woman Paralympic Medalist

• Padma Shri (4th Highest National Civilian Honour by the Indian Government)
• Khel Ratna (Highest National Sports Honour by the Indian Government)
• Arjuna Awardee (National Sports Honour)
• First ever Indian Woman to win a medal at Paralympic Games
• PRESIDENT – Paralympic Committee of India
• ASIAN ORDER Recipient – Awarded by Asian Paralympic Committee
• Silver Medal – Rio Paralympics (1st Indian Woman Paralympic Medalist)
• President’s National Role Model Award
• ‘Women Transforming India’ – NITI Aayog & UN Women India
• ‘First Ladies Award’ – Ministry of Women & Child Development India
• Sir Edmund Hillary Prime Minister’s fellow for New Zealand
• International Paralympic Committee’s International Women’s Day Recognition 2019
• Co - Founder, Wheeling Happiness (Non-Profit Trust Organisation)
• Conferred 3 Honoris Causa Doctorate Degrees
• Member – All India Council of Sports
• Member – UP State Disability Advisory Committee
• Member – PM Modi’s National Committee on India@75 Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav
• Brand Ambassador – Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan NDMC
• Brand Ambassador – TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan

Website: www.deepamalik.in
DR. (h.c.) DEEPA MALIK, PADMA SHRI – PROFILE

Braving Chest-below paralysis and spinal tumour treatment for over 23 years; Deepa is on a mission – Ability Beyond Disability. Born in Bengaluru on 30th September 1970, Deepa Malik hails from an Army Family, with her father, brother, husband and father-in-law all having served in the Indian Army. She is an international sportsperson par excellence, forever transforming the sports landscape of India by becoming the country’s First Woman Paralympic Medalist; recipient of Six Prestigious President of India Awards & honours – Padma Shri (Ministry of Home Affairs); Khel Ratna (Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports) Arjuna Award (Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports); President’s National Role Model Award (Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment); Women Transforming India Award (NITI Aayog, United Nations India & MyGov) and 'First Ladies Award' (Ministry of Women & Child Development) as well as 5 state governments’ honours. In 2020, Dr. Deepa Malik has been appointed as a member of the government’s All India Council of Sports and is also serving as the President of the Paralympic Committee of India.

In 2022, Dr. Deepa Malik has been conferred the Asian Order – the highest honour in the Asian Continent by the Paralympic Fraternity – for her exemplary contribution as President of PCI, leading the Indian Contingent to win the highest number of medals in history. In recognition of her efforts, Dr. (h.c.) Deepa Malik has been selected as the Sir Edmund Hillary Prime Minister’s Fellow for New Zealand for 2019 by PM Jacinda Ardern, to strengthen bilateral friendly relations between the people of India and New Zealand. Deepa Malik is also handling Public Relations & Grievances for Haryana Real Estate Regulatory Authority. She is also a member of the Disability Advisory Board of the Uttar Pradesh State Government and PM Narendra Modi’s National Committee to celebrate 75 Years of Independence. She is a motivational speaker who has been conferred the International Human Rights Council’s ‘Exceptional Speaker Award’, among many other prestigious awards and recognitions to her name. She holds Four Limca World Records in the Adventure Category; she is the first woman to represent the country at international level sports in her category of disability (F-53). She is also the first ever Indian paraplegic woman swimmer, biker and car rallyist.

With a count of 23 international medals and 68 national & state level medals in swimming, javelin, shotput & discus events, she is the first Indian to receive the International Women’s Day Recognition from the International Paralympic Committee (awarded each year to one woman from all over the world), for her contribution to advancing disability sports for women in India. She has been ranked as one of the top 10 Asian Women Leaders in 2017 by the Great Asia Women Achievers Awards 2017.

Deepa Malik has created history by becoming the first ever Indian female Para athlete to win an Asian Games medal in athletics as well as the first ever female World Championship medal. She is also India's first ever female Paralympic Medallist across any sport. She has created history by becoming the only Indian woman athlete ever to win medals at 3 successive Asian Games and retain the Asian Record in Javelin throw throughout the years. She also holds a world record in open river swimming for swimming across the Yamuna River for 1km against the current. She has been listed as one of the 10 most inspirational women para-athletes of the world by International Paralympic Committee.

Deepa is also a record holder in driving customised cars & motorbikes; she became the first ever physically challenged person (man or woman) in the world to get a rally licence to compete in the ‘Raid-de-Himalaya’ car rally on the world's highest motorable roads. Deepa Malik has created yet another record by doing a pan-India drive to promote para-sports in the country and spread the message of Ability Beyond Disability. Dr.(h.c.) Deepa Malik has been awarded Honoris Causa Doctorate by ITM University, India in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the fields of sports and adventure sports in India; and another Honoris Causa Doctorate by Raffles University, India in recognition of her contribution to social work; as well as a THIRD Honoris Causa Doctorate by KIIT University Bhubaneshwar in October 2022.

Deepa contributed immensely towards better sports policies for physically challenged in her role as a member of the Working Group for the Formulation of 12th Five Year Plan (2012 – 2017). Deepa works closely with the government to implement progressive & inclusive policies. She is the ‘Clean India’ (Swachh Bharat) brand ambassador for New Delhi Municipal Corporation and expert consultant for Disability Inclusive Accessible Infrastructure for Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs ‘Smart Cities’ project. Deepa Malik is currently a member of Hon. PM Modi’s National High-Level Committee for celebrating 75 years of India’s Independence – ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.’ Deepa Malik promotes universal inclusion across all spheres of life, including fashion, having participated in numerous Indian Fashion Weeks on her wheelchair and doing adaptive clothing feature spreads in multiple national & international fashion magazines like FEMINA, GRAZIA, HARPER’S BAZAAR to name a few. As the co-founder of Wheeling Happiness Foundation, she has taken up the cause of enhancing the emotional health of persons with challenges and empowering women through outdoor sports, motor sports and adventure activities and also assisting the training and sports equipment requirements of para sports persons. The foundation also enables persons from lower socio – economic strata as well as running disability sports awareness & advocacy sessions at various schools and colleges. The foundation has provided more than 500 mobility aiding devices. She also provides disability sensitization training to airline staff. Deepa Malik has assisted many physically challenged persons to learn driving & sports and hence live a more self – reliant life.

INTERNATIONAL ACHIEVEMENTS:

1. Asian Order – Asian Paralympic Committee 2022
2. Sir Edmund Hillary Prime Minister’s fellow for New Zealand 2019
3. International Paralympic Committee – International Women’s Day Recognition 2019
4. Asian Para Games Jakarta 2018 – Javelin – BRONZE (New Asian Record in Javelin F-53
category)
5. Asian Para Games Jakarta 2018 – Discus – BRONZE
6. IPC Indian Open Para Athletics Championship 2018 – Javelin – GOLD
7. IPC Indian Open Para Athletics Championship 2018 – Discus – GOLD
8. Paralympic Games Rio, Brazil 2O16 – Shotput – SILVER
9. IPC World Athletics Grand Prix Desert Challenge Games USA 2O16 – Javelin – GOLD
10. IPC World Athletics Grand Prix Desert Challenge Games USA 2O16 – Shotput – SILVER
11. IPC Asian Oceania Championship Dubai 2016 – Javelin – GOLD
12. IPC Asian Oceania Championship Dubai 2016 – Shotput – SILVER
13. IPC Athletics World Championship Doha 2015 – Shotput – DIPLOMA POSITION
14. Asian Para Games Incheon 2014 – Javelin – SILVER (New Asian Record in Javelin F-53
category)

15. IPC World Athletics Grand Prix 2nd China Open Athletics Championship Beijing 2014 –
Shotput – GOLD
16. IPC World Athletics Championship Lyon 2013 – DIPLOMA POSITION
17. IPC Athletics Grand Prix German Open Athletics Championship Berlin 2013 – IPC
Athletics Championship Qualification event – Only Indian woman to earn a
qualification slot for IPC World Athletics Championship Lyon 2013
18. First Malaysian Open Athletics Championship 2012 – Javelin – GOLD (New Asian
Record in Javelin F-53 category)
19. First Malaysian Open Athletics Championship 2012 – Discus – GOLD
20. IWAS World Games Sharjah 2011 – Javelin – BRONZE (New Asian Record in Javelin F53 category)
21. IWAS World Games Sharjah 2011 – Shotput – BRONZE (New Asian Record in Javelin F53 category)
22. IPC World Athletics Championship Christchurch, NZ 2011 – Shotput – SILVER
23. Commonwealth Games New Delhi, India 2010 – Shotput – DIPLOMA POSITION – Only
Indian woman at CWG2010 to earn a qualification slot for IPC World Athletics
Championship Lyon 2013
24. Asian Para Games China 2010 – Shotput – BRONZE (First Ever Medal Won By an Indian
Female Athlete at Asian Games)
25. CP Sports Nottingham England 2010 – Shotput – GOLD
26. CP Sports Nottingham England 2010 – Javelin – GOLD
27. CP Sports Nottingham England 2010 – Discus – GOLD
28. IWAS World Games, Bangalore India 2009 – Shotput – BRONZE
29. World Open Swimming Championship Berlin 2008 – Swimming S-5 Backstroke – 10th
POSITION
30. IWAS World Games Taiwan 2007 – Javelin – DIPLOMA POSITION
31. FESPIC Games Kuala Lumpur 2006 – Swimming S-5 Backstroke – 2
ND POSITION

NATIONAL RECOGNITION:

• Khel Ratna – India’s Highest Sporting Honour – 2019
• Sportstar Aces Awards The Hindu Group Publishing – Sportswoman of the Year (Para-Sports)
– 2019
• Global Spa India Fit & Fab Award for Inspirational Fitness – 2019
• Zee News Fairplay Achiever Award – 2018
• NewsX Women of Steel Awards – Inspirational Woman of the Year – 2018
• Savvy Women Empowerment Award – 2018
• Padma Shri (The 4th Highest Civilian Honour in the Republic of India) – 2017
• President’s ‘First Ladies Award’ (Ministry of Women & Child Development) – 2017
• Times of India Sports Award (TOISA) – 2017
• Hindustan Times ‘Game Changer’ Award – 2017
• Femina Women Award for Sports – 2017
• Indian Sports Honours – 2017
• Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year Awards – Inspirational Athlete of the Year – 2017
• Women Transforming India Award (NITI Aayog, MyGov & United Nations India) – 2016
• India Today Woman Summit & Awards – Woman of Resilience Award – 2016
• Dr. Batra’s Positive Health Hero Award – 2016
• President’s National Role Model Award – 2014
• WCRC Leaders Asia Excellence Award – 2014
• Limca People of the Year Award – 2014
• Indian Confederation of NGOs’ Karamveer Puruskar – 2014
• Arjuna Award (National Sports Award) – 2012
• Amazing Indians Awards Times Now – 2013
• Cavinkare National Ability Mastery Award – 2013
• Karamaveer Chakra Award – 2013
• Nominee for L’Oréal Femina Awards in “Women We Love Category” alongside World
Champion MC Mary Kom, and Bollywood legends Sridevi and Vidya Balan – 2013
• Dr. Batra’s Positive Health Hero Award – 2012
• AWWA (Army Wives Welfare Association) Excellence Award for Sports – 2012
• Media Peace & Excellence Award for Sports – 2012
• Misaal-e-Himmat Award Presented by ‘The Flying Sikh’ Milkha Singh & Padma Shri PT Usha –
2012
• CARE Stree Shakti Puruskar (Woman of Substance) – 2011
• Rashtra Gaurav Puraskar (Pride of the Nation Award) – 2009
• Rotary International Women of The Year Award – 2007
STATE AWARDS:
• Bhim Award – State Government Sports Awards 2013-14 – Haryana
• Maharana Mewar Arawali Sports Award 2012 – Rajasthan
• Chatrapathi Award – State Government Sports Awards 2009-10 – Maharashtra
• Karambhoomi Award 2008 – Haryana
• Swawlamban Puruskar (Self-Reliance Award for Entrepreneurs) 2006 – Maharashtra