The Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports has revised the norms of assistance to National Sports Federations (NSFs) under the Scheme of Assistance to NSFs. The last revision of norms was done in February 2022. After the Paris Olympics 2024, a new Olympic cycle has commenced, necessitating a review of the norms in light of evolving circumstances. This comprehensive review was undertaken to address emerging challenges and to support India’s aspiration to host the 2036 Olympic Games. While revising the norms, the Ministry has taken into account the increased costs due to inflation in expenditures associated with training, infrastructure development, equipment procurement, and athlete welfare programs.

Apart from enhancement in the quantum of assistance for several components, some new measures have also been introduced for the first time. Under the revised scheme, NSFs are mandated to ensure that at least 20% of their annual budget is earmarked for grassroots development through their affiliate units, specifically for junior and youth development, to ensure the development of bench strength.

The revised scheme also emphasizes capacity building. At least 10% of the funding provided under the scheme will be allocated for the development of coaches and technical staff. This includes the conduct of training courses in India, courses for Indian personnel abroad, development of coaching curricula, organization of conferences, seminars, and workshops, and the engagement of foreign or Indian experts for the conduct of such workshops or courses, including national and international certification programs.

All NSFs will also be required to appoint a Coaching Education Expert dedicated to training trainers. Foreign experts shall also be mandated to train and build the capacity of local officials and coaches during non-training periods, as decided by the Government in consultation with the concerned NSF. This requirement will be part of the Key Results Areas (KRAs).

NSFs with an annual budget of ₹10 crore and above will be required to mandatorily appoint a High-Performance Director (HPD), who will be responsible for designing and monitoring the overall technical development programme of the sport. The NSFs shall define KRAs for the HPD, which will be included in their hiring contracts.

NSFs of High Priority and Priority sports disciplines shall identify probable groups of athletes in two categories — Senior Group and Junior Group — with high-performance potential. The academies training these probable group athletes will be strengthened by providing support for coaches and technical staff. Additional support will be provided for sports science services and specialized equipment.

NSFs will be required to identify and accredit select academies for the training of probable group athletes. These academies must be selected by the NSFs in a fair and transparent manner. The training programmes delivered at these accredited academies for each sport will be monitored by the respective HPD. A gap analysis of each of these academies shall be presented by NSFs in their proposals for funding.

A dietary allowance of ₹10,000 per month will be provided to each probable group athlete for non-camp days, ensuring that they are not deprived of proper nutrition during these periods.

To professionally manage the affairs of NSFs, support will be provided for the engagement of administrative manpower. Up to 10% of the funding shall be allocated for administrative personnel such as a CEO or Director, supported by managers for finance and accounting, competitions, coach development and procurement, IT, legal affairs, office assistants, interns, etc.

The amount of financial assistance for the conduct of national championships, organization of international tournaments in India, diet charges, and coach salaries has been substantially increased under the revised scheme.

The financial assistance for the conduct of national championships has been increased to ₹90 lakh for High-Priority sports and ₹75 lakh for Priority sports, up from the existing ₹51 lakh.

Financial assistance for hosting international events in the country has been doubled to ₹2 crore.

The salary of the Chief National Coach has been increased from ₹5 lakh to ₹7.5 lakh per month, while the salary of other coaches has been increased from ₹2 lakh to ₹3 lakh per month.

Diet charges have been increased from ₹690 to ₹1,000 per day per athlete for senior athletes and from ₹480 to ₹850 per day for junior athletes.

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Manish Gautam/Divyanshu Kumar