Overview
- Origin
- Ancient
- Category
- Precision
- Olympic discipline
- Yes
- Paralympic discipline
- No
- Central pathway
- Olympic (TOPS eligible)
- Athlete profiles on SportSupport
- 54
Governance and status
Each field below is shown only where we hold a source for it; anything else reads “Not currently verified” rather than a guess. Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports recognition is granted year by year, so it is only ever shown with the year it applies to. Last reviewed: September 2026.
- Indian governing/organising body
- AAI
- Ministry recognition
- Archery Association of India — Annual recognition renewed by the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports — as at 2026Source: Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports — List of recognised National Sports Federations
- International federation
- Not currently verified
- Khelo India inclusion
- On the official Khelo India Games discipline list as "Archery"Source: Sports Authority of India / Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports — Discipline wise Participation in all editions of Khelo India Games (19th Edition) (2026-08-29)
- TOPS eligibility
- In scope — TOPS covers Olympic medal prospects
- Olympic status
- On the Olympic programme
- Paralympic status
- Not a Paralympic discipline
Archery is listed on SportSupport in the precision category. Its recorded origin is Ancient. It is on the Olympic programme. We list AAI as the Indian governing/organising body for the sport.
World-cup regulars with junior teams sweeping podiums.
Archery is on the pathway that runs through India's national sports federations to the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS), with selection running through AAI against its published benchmarks. Being on this pathway is not itself a statement that the discipline is currently in TOPS — TOPS covers a Core Group and a Development Group chosen by the Mission Olympic Cell. Archery appears on the official Khelo India Games discipline list as "Archery", so junior talent identified by the discipline's selectors can be considered under Khelo India Talent Identification & Development (KITID). (Source: Sports Authority of India / Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports — Discipline wise Participation in all editions of Khelo India Games (19th Edition).)
Indian Achievements
Hand-reviewed Olympic, Paralympic, World, Asian and Commonwealth milestones for India in archery, compiled from the sources listed on this page. Last reviewed: September 2026.
- Deepika Kumari — former World No. 1 in recurve archery; multiple World Cup golds.
- Compound team gold — India men's compound team won Archery World Cup gold multiple times.
- Jyothi Surekha Vennam — Asian Games gold 2023 (compound women); World Cup gold multiple times.
- Ojas Deotale — World Champion 2023 (compound individual, men).
- India — Team gold at the Archery World Cup finals in compound events regularly.
- Aditi Swami — Youngest World Champion (compound women's individual, 2023).
Famous Indian Players
Landmark archery names from India, past and present.
- Deepika KumariFormer World No. 1 recurve; multiple World Cup golds.
- Jyothi Surekha VennamCompound archer; Asian Games gold 2023.
- Ojas DeotaleCompound World Champion 2023.
- Aditi SwamiCompound World Champion 2023 (youngest ever).
- Atanu DasOlympian; Tokyo 2020 individual round of 16.
- Bombayla DeviThree-time Olympian (2008, 2012, 2016).
Notable Coaches
Head coaches and mentors behind India's leading archery results.
- Purnima MahatoLong-time India recurve coach; Dronacharya awardee.
- Sergio Pagni (Italy)Compound coach who consulted India's compound team.
- Baek Woong Ki (South Korea)Former India recurve high-performance coach.
- Ram AwadhAAI compound national coach.
Scholarships & Funding
Central, state and private scholarships available for archery athletes in India.
- Tata Archery Academy (Jamshedpur)
Full residential scholarship for talented junior boys and girls (produces most of India's Olympians).
- SAI NCoE Archery (Jamshedpur, Sonepat)
SAI National Centre of Excellence scholarships.
- Jharkhand Government archery scholarships
State cash awards and stipend for archers from Jharkhand tribal belts.
- Khelo India Talent Identification & Development (KITID)
Monthly stipend (₹10,000 for selected Khelo India athletes), boarding, coaching and kit at accredited centres for talent identified through the Khelo India selection process (Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports). Applies only to disciplines on the official Khelo India Games list, and only to athletes it selects.
- Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS)
Central government scheme covering training, foreign exposure, equipment and an out-of-pocket allowance (up to ₹50,000/month) for athletes inducted by the Mission Olympic Cell. The Sports Authority of India names archery among the scheme's high-priority disciplines, though induction is still decided athlete by athlete.
Indian Players
54 profiles- Deepika KumariJharkhand
Former world number one in recurve archery.
- Abhishek VermaIndia
Abhishek Verma (born 26 June 1989) is an Indian compound archer. He has won multiple medals at the Asian Games, World Cup and Asian Championships, including a silver in the mixed team event at the 2021 World Championships. He became the first Indian archer to score a perfect 600 in an international competition, achieving the feat at the 2024 GT Open.
- Aditi SwamiIndia
Aditi Swami (born 15 June 2006) is an Indian compound archer. She won the gold medal in the women's individual compound event at the 2023 World Championships, becoming the first Indian female archer to achieve this feat.
- Aman SainiIndia
Aman Saini (born 15 July 1997) is an Indian compound archer.
- Ankita BhakatWest Bengal
Ankita Bhakat (born 17 June 1998) is an Indian recurve archer. Bhakat competed at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where she finished fourth in the recurve mixed team event after losing the bronze medal match.
- Atanu DasWest Bengal
Atanu Das (born 5 April 1992) is an Indian archer. He represents India in the recurve men's individual and team events.
- Bhajan KaurHaryana
Bhajan Kaur (born 26 August 2005) is an Indian archer from Haryana. She was selected for the Indian Archery team for the recurve events at the 2022 Asian Games held in Hangzhou, China. Along with Ankita Bhakat and Simranjeet Kaur, she won the Women's team recurve event bronze medal for India.
- Bombayla Devi LaishramManipur
Bombayla Devi Laishram (born 22 February 1985) is an Indian former archer. A member of the national recurve team representing India at the international events for a decade-and-a-half starting 2007, she has won a silver medal at the World Archery Championships, and four gold, five silver, and four bronze medals at various editions of the Archery World Cup. Laishram peaked at no.
- Chekrovolü SwüroNagaland
Chekrovolü Swüro (born 21 November 1982) is an Indian archer from Nagaland. She represented India in archery in the 2002 Asian Games and 2006 Asian Games held at Busan, South Korea, and Doha, Qatar, respectively. She was a member of the silver medal-winning team in the 2011 World Archery Championships, held at Turin, Italy.
- Cherukuri LeninIndia
Cherukuri Lenin (1985 or 1986 – 24 October 2010) was an Indian archer and coach. He was the son of Cherukuri Satyanarayana. In 2005, he won a silver medal at the Asian Grand Prix in Malaysia.
- Dhiraj BommadevaraAndhra Pradesh
Dhiraj Bommadevara (born 4 September 2001) is an Indian recurve archer. Dhiraj competed at the 2024 Olympics, where he narrowly missed the podium, finishing fourth in the recurve mixed team event.
- Divya DhayalUttar Pradesh
Divya Dhayal is an Indian archer. She became the national archery champion at age 15.
- Dola BanerjeeWest Bengal
Dola Banerjee (born 2 June 1980) is an Indian sportswoman who competes in archery.
- Gagandeep KaurPunjab
Gagandeep Kaur (born 1988) is an Indian archer. She is the first archer from Punjab to win a medal in the Archery women's compound team with Jhano Hansdah and Bhagyabati Chanu, defeating Malaysia. For her unexpected performance, she was even awarded with Rs 2 lakh cash award from Punjab University in Patiala.
- Harvinder SinghHaryana
Harvinder Singh (born 25 February 1991) is an Indian paralympic archer. He is a double Paralympic medalist having won the gold at 2024 Paris and the bronze at 2020 Tokyo in the men's singles recurve archery event. His medals were the first Paralympic gold and bronze archery medals for India.
- Jayanta TalukdarAssam
Jayanta Talukdar (born 2 March 1986 in Guwahati) is an Indian archer from Assam. He has won individual gold Medal in the 2006 Archery World Cup.
- Jhano HansdahIndia
Jhano Hansdah (born 24 October 1975) is an Indian female compound archer and part of the national team. She competed at the 2013 World Archery Championships.
- Jyothi Surekha VennamAndhra Pradesh
Jyothi Surekha Vennam (born 3 July 1996) is an Indian archer. She competes in the compound discipline, a non-Olympic event debuting at the 2028 LA Olympics. She has won gold medals at the World Championships, World Cup, Asian Games and the Asian Championships.
- Komalika BariJharkhand
Komalika Bari (born 5 February 2002 in Jamshedpur) is only the third Indian player to win the world title at the Tata Archery Academy's Cadet World Youth Archery Championships. She made her mark to ensure her place in the Indian team for elite events including the World Championships and the Olympic Test Event. She participated in world u-18 championship held in Wroclaw in August.
- Krishna DasWest Bengal
Krishna Das (Bengali: কৃষ্ণা দাস; born 23 May 1959 in Calcutta) is a former Indian archer. Das represented India in the Asian Games in 1978 in Bangkok and 1982 in Delhi, and in three Asian Archery meets. She was the first archer to receive the Indian Government's Arjuna Award to recognise outstanding sportspersons in 1984.
- Laxmirani MajhiWest Bengal
Laxmirani Majhi (born 26 January 1989) is an Indian female right handed recurve archer.
- Limba RamRajasthan
Limba Ram is an Indian archer who represented India in international competitions, including three Olympics. He equalled an archery world record in 1992 at the Asian Archery Championships in Beijing. He was awarded the Padma Shri Award in 2012.
- Madhumita KumariIndia
Madhumita Kumari is an Indian archer. She won the Silver Medal Asian Games 2018 in the Women's compound archery team event.
- Majhi SawaiyanIndia
Majhi Sawaiyan (born 23 December 1981) is an athlete from India. He competes in archery. Sawaiyan competed at the 2004 Summer Olympics in men's individual archery.
- Mangal Singh ChampiaJharkhand
Mangal Singh Champia (born 9 November 1983) is an Indian archer, who won multiple medals in several international events, including the 2006 Asian Games. He was conferred with the Arjuna award by the President of India for the year 2009. Mangal started archery in the year 1995 and became pro in 2008.
- Muskan KirarMadhya Pradesh
Muskan Kirar (born 2001) is an Indian archer. She won the gold medal in the women's compound final event at the Archery Asia Cup, stage-1 competition in Bangkok on 7 March 2018. She beat Malaysian archer Sazatul Nadhirah Zakaria by 139-136.
- Ojas Pravin DeotaleIndia
Ojas Pravin Deotale (born 18 June 2002) is an Indian compound archer. He won the gold medal in the men's individual compound event at the 2023 World Championships, becoming the first Indian male archer to achieve this feat.
- Parth SalunkheIndia
Parth Sushant Salunkhe (born 4 November 2003) is an Indian recurve archer. He's a silver medalist at the Asian Championships as well as a 4-time gold, 5-time silver, 2-time bronze medalist at the Asian Cup. He's also a 3-time gold medalist and 1-time bronze medalist at the World Youth Championships.
- Payal NagIndia
Payal Nag (born 2008) is an Indian para archer from Odisha. She is a quadruple amputee.
- Pooja JatyanIndia
Pooja Jatyan (born 1998) is a para archer from Haryana. She is the first para athlete from India to take part in an Olympic Archery event at the Rio Paralympics 2016. She took part in the recurve women's open competition and qualified for the Rio event at the final world qualifier in the Czech Republic in 2016.
- Pooja KhannaHaryana
Pooja Khanna is India's first ever Paralympic Archery player. She debuted at the 2016 Rio Paralympics at the age of 25 and was the only archer from India among all 19 athletes sent to the Games. She secured a fifth-place in the final Paralympic Qualifier which secured India's spot in the 2016 Olympics under World Quota Recurve Women Open in the Czech Republic 2016.
- Pranitha VardhineniTelangana
Pranitha Vardhineni is an Indian Recurve Archer.
- Pravin JadhavMaharashtra
Pravin Ramesh Jadhav (born 6 July 1996) is an Indian archer who competes in the recurve discipline. At the 2019 World Archery Championships, he was a member of the first Indian team to qualify for the final since 2005; the team received the silver medal. He made his Olympic debut in Tokyo at the 2020 Summer Olympics and represented India again at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
- Purnima MahatoJharkhand
Purnima Mahato is an Indian archer and archery coach from Jamshedpur, India. She has won the Indian national archery championships. She was a coach for the Indian national team at the 2008 Summer Olympics and was selected to coach the team at the 2012 Summer Olympics.
- Purvasha ShendeManipur
Purvasha Sudhir Shende is an Indian Archer. She won the Bronze Medal Asian Games 2014 in Incheon in the Women's team compound event along with Surekha Jyothi and Trisha Deb. She is a young budding archer the country has produced.
- Rahul BanerjeeWest Bengal
Rahul Banerjee (Bengali: রাহুল বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায়; born 15 December 1986) is an Indian Olympian and Arjuna Awardee archer.
- Raj KaurPunjab
Raj Kaur is an Indian professional archer. She won the bronze medal in the women's compound division at the 2019 World Archery Championships held from 10 June to 16 June 2019 at 's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands. The Indian women's compound team of Muskan Kirar, Jyothi Surekha Vennam, and Raj Kaur defeated Turkey 229-226.
- Rajat ChauhanRajasthan
Rajat Chauhan (born 30 December 1994) is an Indian archer. Chauhan won a silver medal in the World Archery Championships in Copenhagen, becoming the first Indian to win an individual medal in compound archery at the World Championships. He won the Gold Medal in the Asian Games 2014 in Incheon in the men's compound archery team event along with Abhishek Verma and Sandeep Kumar.
- Rakesh KumarIndia
Rakesh Kumar (born 13 January 1985) is an Indian compound para-archer. He won a bronze medal in the mixed team compound event at the 2024 Paris Paralympics. Kumar has also won gold medals at the 2022 Asian Para Games and the 2023 World Championships in the same event.
- Reena KumariIndia
Reena Kumari (born 15 January 1984) is an athlete from India who competes in archery. Kumari represented India at the 2004 Summer Olympics. She placed 43rd in the women's individual ranking round with a 72-arrow score of 620.
- Rimil BuriulyIndia
Rimil Buriuly (born 9 January 1991) is an Indian archer. Rimil was part of bronze winning team in Women's Recurve event at the 2010 Asian Games held in Guangzhou, China between 12 and 27 November 2010. Rimil is employed in Indian Railways in Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh.
- Rishabh YadavIndia
Rishabh Yadav (born 13 August 2002) is an Indian compound archer. He has won medals at the World Championships, World Cup the Asian Championships. In 2025, he partnered with Jyothi Surekha to set the mixed team world record with a score of 1431 at the World Cup.
- Sanand MitraIndia
Sanand Salil Mitra (born 5 May 1983) is an Indian national compound archer. He was twice awarded a national gold medal in the sport.
- Sandeep KumarIndia
Sandeep Kumar is an Indian Archer. He won the gold medal at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea in the men's compound archery team event along with Abhishek Verma and Rajat Chauhan. He had been honoured with the Arjuna award in the year 2015.
- Sanjeev SinghBihar
Sanjeev Singh (born 18 November 1965) is an Indian archer. He competed in the men's individual and team events at the 1988 Summer Olympics.
- Sarita DeviIndia
Sarita Adhana (born 1 January 1987) is an Indian paralympic archer. She qualified to represent India at the 2024 Summer Paralympics in Paris in the women's Individual compound event of Archery competitions. She lost in the quarterfinals at Paris Paralympics.
- Satyadev PrasadIndia
Satyadev Prasad (born 19 September 1979) is an athlete from India. He competes in archery. Prasad competed at the 2004 Summer Olympics in men's individual archery.
- Sheetal DeviIndia
Sheetal Devi (born 10 January 2007) is an Indian compound para-archer. She won a bronze medal in the mixed team compound event at the 2024 Paris Paralympics, becoming the youngest Indian Paralympian medalist. She has won gold medals at all the major competitions including the World Championships, Asian Championships and the Asian Para Games.
Rules
Archers shoot arrows at a circular target from a set distance (70m in Olympic recurve), scoring 1-10 points based on proximity to the centre (10 = innermost ring). Formats include ranking rounds (total score) and head-to-head elimination sets.
Authoritative rulebook: AAI. Age-group and school-level variations are published by SGFI and the state associations each season.
Positions
Typical roles across precision sports. These are category-level descriptions, not a sourced archery squad list.
- Rifle / pistol events10m air, 25m and 50m disciplines shot to an electronic target.
- Shotgun eventsTrap and skeet — moving clay targets scored on hits.
- Archery — recurve & compoundRanking round and head-to-head elimination matches.
- Team eventsThree-athlete team formats contested at Asian, Commonwealth, World and Olympic level.
Equipment
Standard kit and infrastructure required to train and compete in archery at a federation-recognised event.
- Bow (recurve or compound)
- Arrows
- Target face (10-ring scoring)
- Arm guard and finger tab/release aid
Governing/organising body
Archery Association of India is the body we list as the Indian governing/organising body for Archery. Its recognition status as we hold it: Annual recognition renewed by the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports (as at 2026). Recognition is granted year by year, so read the federation profile for the source.
- Origin
- Ancient
- Olympic
- Yes
- Paralympic
- No
- Category
- Precision
Major Indian Events
Domestic competitions we hold a source for in archery.
- Senior National Archery Championship
AAI-sanctioned senior recurve, compound and Indian round nationals.
- Sub-Junior, Junior, Youth Nationals
AAI age-group nationals feeding the World Archery Youth Championships.
- All India Inter-University Archery Championship
AIU's university-level nationals.
- Selection Trials for World Cups & Olympics
AAI trials for stage-1 through stage-4 World Cup events.
International Events
Continental and world-level competitions we hold a source for in archery.
- Olympic Games (Archery)
Recurve individual, team and mixed team events.
- World Archery Championships
Biennial world championship in recurve and compound.
- Archery World Cup
Four-stage seasonal circuit with a final.
- Asian Games / Asian Archery Championships
Continental championships (Asian Games has compound and recurve).
- World Archery Youth Championships
U-18 and U-21 world championship.
Leagues
No dedicated professional league is currently catalogued for archery. The national championship under AAI remains the top domestic competition.
All leagues →International Players
Globally recognised archery athletes to know outside India.
- South Korea (Recurve)Most-decorated recurve archery nation in Olympic history.
- Kim Woo-jin (South Korea)Olympic and multiple World recurve champion.
- USA (Compound)Historically dominant in compound at World Archery Championships.
- Sara López (Colombia)Multi-time World Cup and World Games compound champion.
Career Options
Ways to build a career in archery — on the field, on the sidelines and behind the scenes.
- TOPS-supported international archer
- AAI / World Archery-certified coach and judge
- Bow technician and equipment specialist
- Range operator and safety officer
- Sports quota jobs — Tata Steel, Railways, Jharkhand & Odisha state services
- Sports-medicine and archery-specific physiotherapy
Related academies
32 listed- SAI Eastern Centre, KolkataEliteKolkata, West Bengal · Since 1976
Regional Olympic pipeline for eastern India across archery, athletics, gymnastics, women's hockey and table tennis.
- SAI North-East Regional Centre, ImphalNationalImphal, Manipur · Since 1985
Northeast's premier residential centre, running nine NCOE disciplines from archery and cycling to wushu and weightlifting.
- Tata Archery AcademyEliteJamshedpur, Jharkhand · Since 1996
Tata Steel's residential archery academy — pipeline for Indian recurve teams.
- Army Sports InstituteElitePune, Maharashtra · Since 2001
Indian Army's elite multi-sport institute producing Olympians and Asian Games medallists.
- SAI National Centre of Excellence (NCOE), SonepatEliteSonepat, Haryana · Since 2005
SAI Ch. Devi Lal Northern Regional Centre — India's national wrestling hub since 2009.
- Dr. YSR Sports School, KadapaNationalKadapa, Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh's Khelo India State Centre of Excellence, training archers, athletes and weightlifters in YSR district.
- Sangey Lhaden Sports Academy, ChanglangNationalChanglang, Arunachal Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh's Khelo India State Centre of Excellence for archery, judo and weightlifting.
- Rajya Khel Prashikshan Kendra, BilaspurNationalBilaspur, Chhattisgarh
Chhattisgarh's Khelo India State Centre of Excellence in Bilaspur, running archery, athletics and hockey.
- New Sports Complex, SilvassaNationalSilvassa, Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu
The Khelo India State Centre of Excellence for Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu, at Silvassa.
- High-performance Centre, NadiadNationalNadiad, Gujarat
Gujarat's Khelo India State Centre of Excellence at Nadiad, for athletics, table tennis and archery.
- Mega Sports Complex, Hotwar, RanchiNationalRanchi, Jharkhand
Jharkhand's Khelo India State Centre of Excellence at the Hotwar mega sports complex, Ranchi.
- Open Stadium Spituk / Lamdon Archery Field / Boxing Hall, LehNationalLeh, Ladakh
Ladakh's Khelo India State Centre of Excellence, notified across three venues for archery, athletics and boxing.
Government Schemes
8 listedCentral and state schemes that fund training, stipends and awards for archery athletes and academies.
- Government of Maharashtra (Sports and Youth Services)Maharashtra 5% Reservation for Meritorious Sportspersons (revised policy, 2026)
On 8 September 2026 the Maharashtra Cabinet approved a revised policy for the 5 per cent parallel reservation for meritorious sportspersons in direct recruitment in state government and semi-government bodies. Sports included in at least three consecutive Summer Olympic Games after 2005 qualify, and Kabaddi, Kho-Kho, Chess, Mallakhamb and Cricket have been added as regional sports. Under the revised policy, sports certificates must be verified through a digital Sports E-Certificate system within three months, and earlier government resolutions on the quota were rescinded.
- Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC), a Government of India enterprise under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural GasONGC Sports Scholarship Scheme
Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC), a Government of India enterprise, gives monthly scholarships to economically weaker young sportspersons who have the potential to excel in sport, in games including badminton, boxing, wrestling, kabaddi, chess, athletics and para sports. This is a public-sector company scheme, not a government department scheme. A scholarship is awarded for one year and can be extended up to two years based on annual performance. The number of scholarships is fixed game by game; for the 2025-26 round, for example, badminton had 6 (3 for men and 3 for women) and kabaddi had 20.
- NHPC Limited (a Government of India enterprise under the Ministry of Power)NHPC Sports Scholarship Scheme for Upcoming Sportspersons
NHPC Limited, a Government of India enterprise, offers a sports scholarship to promising young players aged 14 to 19 years (14 to 24 years for para sports) in 16 games, to encourage their talent and build a talent pool during their formative years of education. This is a public-sector company scheme, not a government department scheme. Up to 32 scholarships are provided, two in each game, in two categories, Elite Scholar and Scholar, for a period of three years.
- Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), a Government of India enterprise under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural GasIndianOil Divyashakti Para-Sports Scholarship Scheme
Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), a Government of India enterprise, offers 100 para-sports scholarships (50 for men, 50 for women) in two categories, Para Scholar and Elite Para Scholar, across 16 para games including badminton. This is a public-sector company scheme, not a government department scheme. A scholarship runs for a maximum of three years, with a performance review after each year.
- Ministry of Youth Affairs and SportsKhelo India Youth Games (KIYG)
A flagship annual multi-disciplinary grassroots event held to identify and nurture young sporting talent at the school and college level across India.
- Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and PensionsRecruitment of Meritorious Sportspersons to Group C Posts in the Central Government (DoPT Sports Quota)
Under instructions of the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), central government ministries and departments can directly recruit meritorious sportspersons to Group C posts (including erstwhile Group D) that are filled by direct recruitment, in relaxation of the normal recruitment procedure. The list of qualifying sports has 65 disciplines (63 listed in 2020, with Tennis Ball Cricket added in January 2021 and Yogasana in June 2022). Kudo, Karate, Taekwondo, Golf, Judo, Boxing, Wrestling, Badminton, Cricket and Tennis are among them. Railways and a few scientific and atomic-energy services follow separate rules.
- NTPC Limited (a Government of India enterprise under the Ministry of Power) with the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, the National Sports Development Fund (NSDF), the Sports Authority of India (SAI) and the Archery Association of India (AAI)NTPC CSR Archery Development Programme: AAI Accreditation of Schools and Academies
NTPC Limited committed ₹115 crore over five years from its CSR budget for the development of archery in India, under an agreement signed with the National Sports Development Fund and the Sports Ministry. Of this, ₹15 crore was a one-time spend on field targets, training centres and equipment such as bows and arrows, and ₹100 crore (about ₹20 crore a year) was for recurring costs: grassroots development, training of identified and elite talent, coach development, equipment, a sports science lab, scholarships and prize money for high performers, and foreign training and exposure for sub-junior and junior archers. Under this CSR scheme the Archery Association of India invites Expressions of Interest from schools and academies across India for accreditation; selected schools and academies receive financial support for five years. In July 2025 Chhattisgarh's Chief Minister said that NTPC would invest ₹20 crore in two archery academies in Jashpur and Raipur. This is NTPC's CSR funding, not a government department scheme.
- Department of Youth Resources & Sports, NagalandCatch Them Young
A talent identification program targeting school children in rural districts for specialized training.
FAQs
Common questions about archery in India.
Who governs Archery in India?▾
We list AAI as the Indian governing/organising body for Archery, and state associations affiliated to it run age-group and state-level competition. We hold no current-year Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports recognition record for it, so this is not a statement that it is currently a recognised national sports federation — recognition is granted year by year.
Is Archery an Olympic sport?▾
Yes, Archery is on the Olympic programme. Athletes selected by AAI against its published criteria can be considered for TOPS funding.
How do I start playing Archery in India?▾
The usual routes are a school team under the School Games Federation of India (SGFI), a college team under the Association of Indian Universities (AIU), or a private academy affiliated to your state association under AAI. Age-group state championships follow from there.
What government schemes support Archery athletes?▾
The Sports Authority of India names Archery among the Target Olympic Podium Scheme's high-priority disciplines, so medal-prospect athletes in it can be considered for TOPS support, and state governments give cash awards to medallists at events they notify. (Source: Sports Authority of India — https://sportsauthorityofindia.nic.in/sai_new/target-olympic-podium) Archery appears on the official Khelo India Games discipline list as "Archery", so athletes identified by the discipline's selectors can be considered under Khelo India Talent Identification & Development (KITID). Appearing on the list is not itself a grant of funding.
Has India won an Olympic medal in archery?▾
Not yet — India has come close (multiple Olympic quarter-finals and semi-finals) but the Olympic archery medal remains a target.
Which discipline is on the Olympic programme?▾
Only recurve archery is contested at the Olympic Games; compound is on the Asian Games and World Championships programme.
Where do India's top archers train?▾
Tata Archery Academy (Jamshedpur), SAI NCoE Jamshedpur and Sonepat, and the Army Sports Institute (Pune).
Archery in every state & UT
Dedicated pages for Archery in each Indian state and Union Territory — academies, schemes, athletes and how to start.
- Archery in Andhra Pradesh
- Archery in Arunachal Pradesh
- Archery in Assam
- Archery in Bihar
- Archery in Chhattisgarh
- Archery in Goa
- Archery in Gujarat
- Archery in Haryana
- Archery in Himachal Pradesh
- Archery in Jharkhand
- Archery in Karnataka
- Archery in Kerala
- Archery in Madhya Pradesh
- Archery in Maharashtra
- Archery in Manipur
- Archery in Meghalaya
- Archery in Mizoram
- Archery in Nagaland
- Archery in Odisha
- Archery in Punjab
- Archery in Rajasthan
- Archery in Sikkim
- Archery in Tamil Nadu
- Archery in Telangana
- Archery in Tripura
- Archery in Uttar Pradesh
- Archery in Uttarakhand
- Archery in West Bengal
- Archery in Andaman & Nicobar Islands
- Archery in Chandigarh
- Archery in Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu
- Archery in Delhi
- Archery in Jammu & Kashmir
- Archery in Ladakh
- Archery in Lakshadweep
- Archery in Puducherry