In the continuous fight against doping in sports, the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Government of India, Food Safety & Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education & Research, Hyderabad (NIPER Hyderabad) signed a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to create nutritional supplement testing capacity in India, provide information & build awareness about the risks associated with use of nutritional supplements, increase research opportunities in the clean sport & anti-doping domain and provide options for safe and dope-free nutritional supplements for sportspersons.

This MoU is a form of mutual commitment in compliance with the mandate towards strengthening the field of “Food for Special Dietary Use for Sportspersons”. This collaboration will help develop tools for dissemination of data and information generated by the testing laboratory at NIPER Hyderabad for the benefit of the sports ecosystem and the public in India.

This MoU will encourage best practices in the marketing and distribution of supplements in India. It will also educate the athletes about the harmful components present in the nutritional supplements that may affect their long-term performances.

Smt. Sujata Chaturvedi, Secretary (Sports), Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Government of India addressed the gathering and expressed Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Government of India’s continuous commitment towards creating a clean sporting environment in the country. She further added that this MoU is a step to empower our athletes and sports ecosystem to make informed decisions regarding nutritional supplements.

Smt. S. Aparna, Secretary, Department of Pharmaceuticals, Government of India congratulated everyone on achieving this milestone towards nation’s growth in testing nutritional supplements for sportspersons.

The MoU was signed at the Office of Department of Pharmaceuticals, Shastri Bhawan, New Delhi in the presence of Smt. S. Aparna, Secretary, Department of Pharmaceuticals, Government of India, Smt. Sujata Chaturvedi, Secretary (Sports), Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Government of India, Sh. Rajneesh Tingal, Joint Secretary, Department of Pharmaceuticals, Government of India, Sh. Kunal, Joint Secretary (Sports), Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Government of India and Smt. Ritu Sain, Director General & CEO, National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) and other officials.

In the current scenario, inadvertent cases of doping due to lack of awareness around risks associated with use of nutritional supplements, presence of contaminated products in the market and absence of relevant information about nutritional supplements leads to anti-doping rule violations and risks the careers of athletes. This MoU is a step towards combatting inadvertent cases of doping and create a safe sporting environment in the country.

Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Government of India and the National Anti Doping Agency, India (NADA) are committed to safeguard the athletes against inadvertent cases of doping. Previously in 2022, a tripartite MoU was signed amongst Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Government of India, Food Safety & Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and National Forensic Sciences University (NFSU) to create nutritional supplements testing capacity and research in the country. NADA is also working towards sensitizing athletes and the sports ecosystem about risks associated with nutritional supplements through awareness campaigns, IEC material, social media information outreach and audio-visual content.

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NB/SK