A medal won on sheer grit — and a minister quick to celebrate it. Union Labour and Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Thursday, 22 October 2026, congratulated para table tennis star Bhavina Patel and partner Shubham Wadhwa on clinching a bronze medal in the Mixed Doubles Class XD7 event at the Asian Para Games 2026.

Mandaviya posted on X: 'Congratulations to Bhavina Patel and Shubham Wadhwa on winning Bronze in Mixed Doubles Class XD7 at the Asian Para Games 2026. #Cheer4Bharat' — a brief but pointed acknowledgment from the minister who oversees national sports policy.

Bhavina Patel: from Tokyo silver to Asian Para Games podium

Bhavina Patel is no stranger to landmark moments. At the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics, she became only the second Indian para table tennis player to reach a Paralympic final, returning home with a historic silver medal in women's singles Class 4. That performance rewired public and institutional awareness of para table tennis in India almost overnight.

Pairing with Shubham Wadhwa in the mixed doubles format, Patel has now added another continental medal to her collection — a testament to both the depth of her game and India's expanding para sports pipeline.

What the Asian Para Games represent for India

The Asian Para Games, organised every four years by the Asian Paralympic Committee, function as one of the most competitive proving grounds for para athletes on the continent. India's medal tallies at the event have grown steadily since the mid-2010s, tracking a broader surge in government investment in disability sport.

A key driver of that surge has been the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS), which was extended to para athletes in 2018 under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. The scheme channels structured financial support, coaching, and international exposure to athletes identified as podium-level prospects — and Patel herself has been among its beneficiaries.

Ministry's recognition as part of a wider pattern

Mandaviya's post is part of a deliberate ministerial practice of publicly acknowledging para sport achievements alongside able-bodied ones — a signal, however small, that institutional parity is at least aspirationally on the agenda. With the 2028 Paralympic Games in Los Angeles on the horizon, every continental medal carries extra weight as a qualifier confidence-booster and a selection data point.

India's para athletes have come a long way from the margins of the national sports calendar. Bronze at the Asian Para Games is a stepping stone — and for Bhavina Patel, it may well be another chapter in a story that has no intention of ending soon.