National Rifle Association of India

The National Rifle Association of India was founded on 17 April, 1951 with a view to promote and popularize the shooting sports in India as well as for self-defense teaching purposes.^[1] The NRAI arranges national-level shooting competitions and the trials that determine which athletes will represent the country in international events. It is also responsible for identifying and nurturing talented shooters who compete in significant global competitions like the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, and Asian Games.

National Rifle Association of India

Sport	Shooting
Jurisdiction	India
Abbreviation	NRAI
Founded	1951; 73 years ago (1951)
Affiliation	International Shooting Sport Federation
Regional affiliation	Asian Shooting Confederation
Headquarters	New Delhi
President	Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo (2024–)

The first speaker of Lok Sabha, Sh. G.V. Mavlankar founded the NRAI and served as its inaugural president. He was succeeded by Sh. Govind Vallabh Pant, Sh. Lal Bahadur Shastri, Sh. Y. B. Chauhan, Sh. G.S. Dhillon, and Sh. Joginder Singh. In 2010, Raninder Singh took over the presidency.^[2] In 2024, Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo became the new president after winning majority votes. He was formerly the Senior Vice President.^[3]

Tournaments

The NRAI is affiliated to the Indian Olympic Association, the International Shooting Sport Federation, the Asian Shooting Confederation, the Commonwealth Shooting Federation and other international bodies.^[4] NRAI holds five national competitions annually with a view to promote and popularize the Sports of shooting in India:

• National Shooting Championship Competitions (NSCC)
• All India G.V. Mavlankar Shooting Championship (AIGVMSC)
• Sardar Sajjan Singh Sethi Memorial Masters Shooting Championship
• Kumar Surendra Singh Memorial Shooting Championship
• All India Kumar Surendra Singh Memorial Inter School Shooting Championship

International Performance

Shooting in India gained visibility when Abhinav Bindra won the Men's 10Metre Air Rifle at the 2008 Olympic Games. This was India's first ever Olympic gold medal in an individual sport.

Shooting at the 2022 Commonwealth Games

In 2017, the Commonwealth Games Federation announced that the 2022 Commonwealth Games would no longer be held in Durban.^[5] The Games were awarded to Birmingham who chose not to include Shooting in the programme for the first time since 1970.^[6][7][8]

Following unsuccessful representations by the ISSF and British Shooting to have Shooting reinstated,^[9] the NRAI and IOA started plans to host a parallel Shooting competition in India and entered discussions with the CGF to have the medals included in Birmingham's medal table.^[10] The NRAI and IOA proposed full funding for the event, covering travel, accommodation expenses, and other costs for several hundred athletes.^[11] Proposals were also made to include Archery, which had not been included since the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi. Initial plans were to host the event in Chandigarh, which would have required the construction of a new 1000yard fullbore range for the Queens shoot. The planned event - named the Commonwealth Shooting and Archery Championship - was cancelled in July 2021 due to ongoing concerns over COVID-19.^[12][13]

See also

• Sport in India
• List of national, sports governing bodies of India
• India at the Olympics

References

1. "Website of National Rifle Association of India| National Portal of India". www.india.gov.in. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
2. "Raninder Singh appointed NRAI president". The Times of India. Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. 29 December 2010. Archived from the original on 7 July 2012. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
3. Srinivasan, Kamesh (21 September 2024). "Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo elected NRAI President". sportstar.thehindu.com. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
4. Arora, Sumit (7 April 2023). "Kalikesh takes charge as NRAI president". adda247. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
5. "Commonwealth Games: Durban, South Africa will not host Games in 2022". BBC Sport. 13 March 2017. Archived from the original on 13 March 2017. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
6. "Optional Sports at 2022 Commonwealth Games". Around the Rings. 18 January 2018. Archived from the original on 23 January 2018. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
7. "Birmingham 2022: Shooting dropped from Commonwealth Games". BBC. 19 January 2018. Archived from the original on 22 January 2018. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
8. "No shooting at 2022 Commonwealth Games, top official suggests T20 mixed cricket". Indian Express. 19 January 2018. Archived from the original on 21 January 2018. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
9. "The decision of the Birmingham Organizing Committee of the Commonwealth Games 2022". ISSF News. International Shooting Sport Federation. 22 July 2019. Archived from the original on 22 July 2019. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
10. Liam Morgan (6 December 2019). "Exclusive: India could host Commonwealth Games shooting medal event around Birmingham 2022". insidethegames.biz. Dunsar Media Company Limited. Archived from the original on 7 December 2019. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
11. "Commonwealth Games: Birmingham 2022 shooting & archery events could take place in India". BBC Sport. 7 January 2020. Archived from the original on 8 January 2020. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
12. "2022 Commonwealth Games Shooting Championship in India Cancelled". National Rifle Association. National Rifle Association. 2 July 2021. Archived from the original on 24 March 2022. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
13. "Inaugural Commonwealth archery, shooting championships in 2022 cancelled due to COVID". Olympics.com. International Olympic Committee. 2 July 2021. Archived from the original on 2 July 2021. Retrieved 10 June 2022.

External links

• Official website