Paralympic archery champion Rakesh Kumar is EC's PwD national icon

New Delhi: Paralympic archery champion Rakesh Kumar was on Wednesday appointed Election Commission's national icon for persons with disabilities (PwDs).

His mixed compound archery team partner Sheetal Devi was announced as the poll panel's national icon just before the announcement of Lok Sabha polls in March.

In an event organised here, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar, election commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu felicitated Sheetal Devi and Rakesh Kumar in recognition of their outstanding achievement in winning the bronze medal in archery at the Paris Summer Paralympics.

Incidentally, both belong to Jammu and Kashmir where assembly polls are being held. National and state icons help EC in its voter awareness efforts to ensure a higher voter turnout in polls.