Year End
Review
1. Rajiv Gandhi Khel Abhiyan (RGKA):Under this centrally sponsored scheme, annual Sports Competitions
were conducted in 29 States/UTs in the year 2014-15 and a sum of Rs. 83.84
crore was released to these States for holding such competitions. A total
number of 29.08 lakh athletes participated in the sports competitions at
various levels. The participants were youth and from rural areas. Competitions
were held from Block level onwards.
Extensive consultations have been held with State
Governments to make the Scheme more effective.
2. National Sports Talent Search Scheme
(NSTSS)
A new Scheme National Sports Talent Search
Scheme (NSTSS) has been formulated for (i) identification
of sporting talent among students in the age group of 8–12 years (for admission
in Class IV to Class VI) who possess inborn qualities such as anthropometric,
physical and physiological capabilities without any anatomical infirmities; and
(ii) nurturing of the Sporting Potential / talent in District level Sports
schools / Central Sports Schools / National Sports Academies etc., to make them
excel at the National and international sports competitions. This will help
broaden the pool of Sportspersons in the Country.
3. Himalayan Region Sports Festival (HRSF): The Department of Sports has formulated Himalayan Region Sports
Festival (HRSF) for promoting unique sports traditions in the Himalyan Region,
which includes Nepal and Bhutan and Indian states such as J&K, Uttarakhand,
Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim and the North Eastern States.
In the sports competitions to be conducted under HRSF,
all the North Eastern States, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttrakhand
and the neighboring countries such as Nepal and Bhutan will participate. These
competitions will promote various indigenous games as also team spirit between
the hilly states of the country and regional cooperation in the area of sports
with neighboring countries.
4. Special Package for
Development of Sports Infrastructure of Jammu and Kashmir
A special package for development of sports in
Jammu & Kashmir was announced by Prime Minister with a total assistance of
Rs. 200 crores for enhancement of sports facilities in J & K. The works to
be executed under the special package have been finalized in consultation with
the State Government of J&K. Stadiums at Jammu and Srinagar will be brought
to international standard with funding of Rs. 84 crore. Besides that, up-gradation
of existing stadia at Poonch and Rajouri and construction of multipurpose indoor
hall in 12 districts/locations will be carried out to cater to climate of the
State with prolonged winter season. Estimated cost for these works has been
worked out to Rs. 52 crore. For taking up these works, Rs. 6.00 crore have been
earmarked for development of infrastructure for Water Sports Activities in
Pahalgam and Mansar Lake. Rs. 2.63 crore have been earmarked for lighting
system in artificial football ground at TRC Srinagar and Gani Memorial Stadium,
Srinagar. Rs. 55 crore have been earmarked for sports equipments, coaches,
trainers, furniture, competitions etc.
This will provide opportunity to the youth of the State for engaging in
sporting activities and help in weaning them away from militancy.
5. National Sports University at Manipur
The proposal for setting up of National Sports University in Manipur
was formally announced in the Budget 2014-15.
The Government of Manipur has transferred 336.93 acres of land in
Thoubal district of Manipur to the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports for the
proposed University. Hindustan Steelworks Construction Limited (HSCL) a Central
Public Sector Undertaking, has been selected as Project Management Consultant
for setting up the proposed University. The National Sports University Bill,
2015, is under finalization with the Ministry of Law and Justice.
Setting up of National Sports University in Manipur will result in giving an opportunity to the youth
of country in general and of North Eastern States in
particular for pursuing courses such as B.P.Ed, M.P.Ed, Diploma / certificate
courses in coaching, physiotherapy, fitness, sports management, sports
journalism, etc. It would also churn out sportspersons of abilities both at the
grass-roots as well as international levels and also promote sports-industry-related
products like sports goods and medicines.
6. Indian Institute of Sports Science and Research
(IISSR):
Decision has been taken to set up an Indian Institute of Sports
Science and Research (IISSR) with a view to integrating the study, research and
practice of Sports Science and Sports Medicine to achieve excellence in Sports.
The proposed institute would be involved in research work, extension
support services, certification of neutraceuticals and coordination between
faculty of sports science and sports medicine within India and abroad. Along
with this, a scheme has also been evolved for funding of eligible reputed
Universities/ Institutes/ Medical Colleges for setting up/ augmenting of
Departments of Sports Science and Sports Medicine. It is proposed to fund six
(6) Universities and Six (6) Institutes/ Medical Colleges in a phased manner.
Indian Institute of Sports Science and Research (IISSR) would be the first dedicated institute in the
country for research in different Branches of Sports Science and Sports
Medicine. Applicability of such research would improve India’s Sports
capabilities. It would also take up testing of nutritional supplements for
sportspersons through its Quality Assurance Department. Further, it would
develop the necessary scientific and skilled human resource which would be
vital for identification and nurturing sports talent. The foregoing activities,
in turn, would promote industry-related products like sports goods, nutritional
items etc. which would be beneficial to the economy in general.
7. Target Olympic Podium (TOP) Scheme and Preparations for
Rio Olympics 2016:
A programme, namely TOP (Target Olympic Podium) Scheme has been
formulated within the overall ambit of National Sports Development Fund (NSDF)
with the objective of identifying and supporting potential medal prospects for
2016 and 2020 Olympic Games. Focused disciplines are Athletics, Archery,
Badminton, Boxing, Wrestling, Weightlifting and Shooting. The selected
athletes are being provided financial assistance for their customized training
at Institutes having world class facilities and other necessary support.
Benchmark for selection of athletes under the scheme is in relation to
international standards.
106 athletes have been identified so far for
funding under TOP scheme.
Customized training at Institutes having world class facilities and
other necessary support is being provided to the elite athletes, which is expected
to result in improved performance and a higher position in medals tally for the
country.
Further, National coaching camps are
being organized and competitive exposure abroad is being provided to the
identified proables as per Annual Calendar of Training & Competitions
(ACTCs) finalized in consultation with National Sports Federations (NSFs) and
funds are being provided from the Scheme of Assistance to NSFs for which budgetary
allocation of Rs. 185 crore has been made during current financial year
2015-16.
8. MoU with India
Infrastructure Finance Company Limited (IIFCL) for
supporting Badminton sport: The Department of
Sports and India Infrastructure Finance
Company Limited (IIFCL), a company under Ministry of Finance have signed a Memorandum
of Understanding (“MOU”) for supporting Badminton
sport. Under the MOU, IIFCL shall contribute Rs. 30
Crore (Rs. 10 crore each year for 3 years) to the
Target Olympic Podium (TOP) Scheme within ambit of National Sports Development
Fund (NSDF) under its initiatives for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).
IIFCL contributed Rs. 10 Crore to NSDF for the 1st year on
31.3.2015.
9. Hosting of 12th South Asian Games by India: South Asian Games (SAG) are a bi-annual multi-sport event held among
the athletes from South Asia. At present, SAG are joined by eight members
namely, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and
Sri Lanka. The aim of the Games is to promote friendship and goodwill among the
people of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) countries.
After the 11th SAG were held in Dhaka (Bangladesh) in 2010, it was
the turn of Bhutan to host the next edition of the Games. Since Bhutan
expressed its inability to host the Games, the Executive Committee of the South
Asian Olympic Council decided to allot the 12th edition of the Games
to India, being next in the alphabetical order.
12th South Asian Games could not be held in 2012, as
earlier planned. After deliberations and consultations among the Ministry of
Youth Affairs and Sports, Indian Olympic Association, Government of Assam and
Government of Meghalaya, it has been decided that the 12th SAG may
be held in Guwahati and Shillong. 12th South Asian Games are
scheduled to be held at Guwahati and Shillong from 6-16 February 2016
The South Asian Games will see participation of over 3000 athletes
in 23 sports disciplines which include Archery, Athletics, Badminton,
Basketball, Boxing, Cycling, Football, Handball, Hockey, Judo, Kabaddi, Kho
Kho, Shooting, Swimming, Squash, Table Tennis, Taekwondo, Triathlon,
Volleyball, Weightlifting, Wrestling and Wushu.
On 13th December 2015 in a colourful function at
Guwahati, Mascot and Logo of the Games were launched jointly by Minister of
State (Independent Charge) for Youth Affairs and Sports Shri SarbanandaSonowal,
Chief Minister of Assam Shri TarunGogoi and Sports Minister of Meghalaya Shri
S. Sangma.
10. Enhancement in various facilities for athletes: The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports has
on 30th June 2015 enhanced the diet and supplement charges of the
athletes as per the following rates:
I. Diet Charges –
Upto Rs.650/- per day per athlete for
Senior sportspersons
Upto Rs.450/- per day per athlete for
Junior/Sub-junior sportspersons
II. Supplement Charges –
Upto Rs.700/- per day per athlete for
heavy & middle weight power events
Upto Rs.400/- per day per athlete for
endurance, team, sprints and low weight power events
Upto Rs.300/- per day per athlete for
skill events
11. Creation of Regional Sports Federations and their
recognition: With a view to promoting and giving
due acknowledgement and importance to sports having regional spread, the
Ministry has decided to consider granting recognition to sports federations of
certain indigenous sports disciplines as Regional Sports Federations (RSFs)
subject to certain conditions such as, the sports disciplines must be popular
in a region/state and played in one or more states; the sports should have been
played in the region for at least last 10 years; the RSFs seeking recognition
from the Govt. should have conducted championships in all the categories namely
Senior, Junior & Sub-Junior. There shall be only one RSF for each sport;
Federations of only indigenous sports will be considered for recognition as
RSFs; and in case there is an international body for a sport discipline, the
recognition of the said body would be necessary.
12. Issue of Guidelines for providing Sports
Infrastructure/Facilities to Players and Officials during the National
Championships and International Tournaments held in India: In the wake of complaints of poor management in conduct of National
Para Athletics Championships 2015, the Ministry issued guidelines to all
recognized National Sports Federations on 23rd April 2015 for
providing and making arrangements for requisite facilities relating to
playing arena, its accessibility, neat and clean toilets, provision for
drinking water, proper resting place, separate changing rooms for boys and
girls, neat and clean lodging facilities, adequately
equipped with toilets including disabled friendly toilets, proper
transportation facilities for players and officials from the place of stay to
the venue of championship etc.
13. Visit of delegation of
International Olympic Committee: A delegation of International Olympic
Committee (IOC) led by Shri Thomas Bach, President, visited India on 27th
April 2015 for a meeting with Prime Minister to discuss PM’s Vision for
Development of Sports in India.
A
Mémorandum of Understanding (MOU) wasalsosignedbetween International
OlympicCommittee, IndianOlympic Association and the Ministry of
YouthAffairs& Sports, whichaimsat contributing
to the development of sport in India by providing an overall framework of
collaboration between the Parties, within their respective mandates, rules and
procedures, to promote additional initiatives to complement the opportunities
already made available by the IOC through its existing development programmes.
14. Categorization of Sports disciplines to
make them eligible for assistance based on their performance: The Department of Sports reviewed the categorization of sports
disciplines on 23rd Mach 2015 with a view to rendering assistance
from the Government. A new category of ‘high priority’ has been created while
retaining the earlier three categories viz., ‘priority’, ‘general’ and
‘others’. In the ‘High Priority’ category, the sports disciplines played in the
Olympic Games and in which India have won medals in last conducted Asian Games
as well as CWG or in which India has good chance of winning medals in Olympics
have been included. At present, 9 sports disciplines viz., athletics, archery,
badminton, boxing, hockey, shooting, tennis, weightlifting and wrestling have
been included. Focused attention will be provided to High Priority
disciplines.
15. Formulation of selection criteria for sportspersons/teams
for participation in international sports events: The
Department of Sports has formulated the selection criteria for
sportspersons/teams for participation in international sports events and
circulated the same to Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and National Sports
Federations (NSFs) on 10th March 2015. It has been decided that for
participation in multi-disciplinary sports events such as Olympic Games,
Winter Olympics, Asian Games, Commonwealth Games, Asian Indoor Games, Asian
Beach Games, Youth Olympics, Asian Youth Games, Commonwealth Youth Games,
Paralympics and Para-Asian Games, the performance of the sportspersons, in the
individual events during the last twelve months prior to commencement of the
event should not be less than the performance achieved by the 6th position
holder of the previous edition of the respective tournament in measurable
sports and for team events, only those teams which have achieved ranking upto 8th
among participating countries of the concerned tournaments in the last one year
should be considered for participation in the respective tournaments. In
non-measurable individual sports, the sportspersons must have achieved 6th
rank in the last 12 months.
It has also been decided that only the sportspersons, coaches and
support staff approved by the Ministry and Sports Authority of India (SAI) will
be part of the contingent for the events cleared at cost to the government and
no additional sportspersons, coach and support staff will be included even at
no cost to government in such sports competitions.
16. Revision of National Sports Awards Schemes: The Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports revised the Schemes of
Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, Arjuna Award, Dhyan Chand Award and Dronacharya
Awards.
In the revised Schemes, following major amendments have been made:
(i)
Selection Committee for Arjuna Award will be
headed by Retired Judge of Supreme Court/High Court.
(ii)
A sportsperson of eminence/sports
administrator/sports expert belonging to para sports will be member in
Selection Committee for Arjuna Awards.
(iii)
Not more than one sportsperson of
eminence/coach from a particular sports discipline shall be a member of the
Selection Committee to avoid any bias in favour of a particular discipline.
(iv)
Nomination agencies are expected to
send nominations of most deserving sportsperson(s)/coach(es) irrespective of
whether sportspersons/coaches have applied to them for awards.
17. Information to be hosted mandatorily by IOA & NSFs on
their website: The Ministry of Youth Affairs and
Sports has asked Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and the National Sports
Federations (NSFs) to suo-moto disclose various activities carried out by them
on their websites mandatorily. Further, the website must be updated by IOA
& NSFs as frequently as possible and at least once in a fortnight.
They also have been asked to post their audited accounts and the
Balance Sheet of the previous year by 30th June of the current year.
It has also been stipulated that annual accounts of the previous financial year
should be posted by the IOA & NSFs during the current year as soon as it is
finalised but latest by 31st December of the current year.
18. Revision
of the Scheme of Special Awards to Medal Winners in International Sports Events
and their Coaches: The Ministry of Youth Affairs
& Sports revised the Scheme of Special Awards to medal winners in
international events and their coaches in January 2015. In the revised scheme,
the amount of award money have been enhanced. The amount of award money for
medal winners in Olympic Games (summer and winter) has been enhanced from
existing Rs. 50 lakh (gold medal), Rs. 30 lakh (silver medal) and Rs. 20 lakh
(bronze medal) to Rs. 75 lakh, Rs. 50 lakh and Rs. 30 lakh respectively. The
amount of award money for medal winners in Asian Games and Commonwealth Games
has been enhanced from existing Rs. 20 lakh (gold medal), Rs. 10 lakh (silver
medal) and Rs. 6 lakh (bronze medal) to Rs. 30 lakh, Rs. 20 lakh and Rs. 10
lakh respectively. In the category of the World Championships, Asian
Championships and Commonwealth Championships, three separate categories of
award money have been provided depending on whether the championships is held
once in four years, once in two years or held annually.
Amount of award money for medalists of Paralympic Games (summer
& winter), Para-Asian Games and Commonwealth Games (Para-Athletes) have
been fixed at par with medalists of Olympic Games, Asian Games and
Commonwealth Games.
IBSA World Championship of Blind, Deaflympics and Special Olympics
(summer & winter) have been included in the revised scheme of special
awards.
19. Successful conduct of 35th
National Games, Kerala: 35th National Games were successfully organized from 31st
January to 14th February, 2015 in Kerala. Sports competitions in 34
sports disciplines and 2 demo events were held at 25 venues and at temporary
overlays spread across 7 Districts of Kerala viz., Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam,
Alappuzha, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Kozhikkode and Kannur. For 35th National Games, the Government of India has
given grant of Rs. 121 crore to the Government of Kerala in the form of
Additional Central Assistance for creation/upgradation of sports
infrastructure.
20. India’s commendable performance at Special World Olympics
2015, Los Angeles: Indian sportspersons put up commendable performance at Special World Olympics 2015 held at Los Angeles (USA) from 25th
July to 2nd August 2015 by winning 173 medals (47 gold, 54 silver
and 72 bronze). India finished 3rd in medals tally behind only USA
and China.
The Ministry cleared participation of the Indian contingent at cost
to the Government in Special World Olympics 2015. Indian contingent comprised
of 275 persons, which included 214 sportspersons, 53 coaches, 3 psychologists
and 5 contingent officials.
21. Categorization of
sports disciplines and recognition of ‘Yoga’ as a sports discipline: The categorization of various Sports disciplines
was reviewed and the revised categories of sports disciplines and the scale of
financial assistance admissible to each category under the Scheme of Assistance
to National Sports Federations (NSFs) was conveyed to Indian Olympic
Association (IOA) and all recognized NSFs.
Based
on the past performance in major international events, it has been decided to
upgrade the sport of Fencing from ‘Others’ to ‘General’ category. It has
been decided to place ‘University Sports’ in the ‘Priority’ category.It has
further been decided to recognize ‘Yoga’ as a sports discipline and to place it
in the ‘Priority’ category.
22. Working Group Constituted for Re-drafting of the National
Sports Development Code of India:
Transparency and good governance
in the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and in various sports federations of
the country is of paramount importance for development of sports in India. For
this purpose, the Government had issued various instructions from time to time
and several initiatives were taken. All the orders/notifications/instructions/circulars
issued till 2001 were amalgamated with necessary modifications, into one
comprehensive Code titled National Sports Development Code of India (NSDCI),
2011 which came into force with immediate effect from 31-01-2011.
Since then a lot of developments
have taken place in sports sector necessitating more accountability and
transparency in the functioning of the sports bodies. Hence, further amendments
to the various provisions of NSDCI need to be re-examined and bring about
suitable amendments to relevant provisions of the NSDCI.
To facilitate holding of
consultations and prepare a revised draft of the NSDCI, the Ministry has
constituted a Working Group under chairmanship of Hon’ble Justice C.K. Mahajan (Retd.).
The Working Group will examine
existing NSDCI from both sports governance and legal angles and
fine-tune/revise the same with the purpose of making it more precise and
succinct, make specific recommendations on preparation of Electoral College and
streamlining of State/District bodies and make any other recommendations, as
deemed fit.
23. Revision of scale
of assistance to Sportspersons and National Sports Federations: With a view to give a boost to the preparation
of Indian athletes for Rio Olympics, 2016 and enhancing the medal hopes of the
country, the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports has made upward revision of
various financial parameters under the Scheme of Assistance to National Sports
Federations on 27thOctober 2015.
As per the revised norms, the amount for holding
National Championships has been revised from Rs.2.lakhs for seniors, juniors
and sub-juniors to Rs.5 lakhs for seniors, Rs.7 lakhs for juniors and Rs.10
lakhs for sub-juniors. This will help catch sporting talent young.
To promote traditional tournaments, a new provision of assistance of up to Rs.
5 lakh each for such events has been made. Such tournaments will be identified
by a Committee of experts. Assistance of Rs. 25 lakh will be available for
holding prestigious tournaments in India. This will help improve the quality of
tournaments.
Senior players and coaches will be allowed to travel by air in economy class
for a distance beyond 500 kms. Similarly, junior players will be allowed to
travel by air in economy class for a distance beyond 1200 kms. Sub-junior
players will be allowed to travel by AC III tier. Earlier, air travel was not
admissible and senior players were travelling by AC II tier and junior and
sub-junior players were travelling by sleeper class for domestic competitions.
This will make participation by athletes less stressful and convenient.
Air travel has been allowed for coaching camps and competitions held in the
North-East Region. Similarly, the athletes from the North-East Region will be
allowed air travel from their residence/coaching camps to and from Kolkata.
Medical insurance policy of Rs.5 lakhs and Personal Accident Policy of Rs.25
lakhs for athletes has been allowed.
For international events held in India, the quantum of financial assistance has
been enhanced from Rs.10 lakhs to Rs.30 lakhs per tournament. The assistance
can be utilized for boarding, lodging, transportation, rent of playfields, cost
of consumable equipment, certificates, medals, awards and prize money. Prior to
the revision, there was no provision of assistance for prize money.
The salary of various support personnel like doctors, physiotherapists,
psychologists, masseurs, etc. has also been substantially hiked to attract
highly skilled personnel to assist the athletes.
High Performance Specialist Coaches with a remuneration up to Rs. 2 lakh per
month can be engaged by SAI/NSFs for sports disciplines included in mega
events.
The salary of Chief Coach has been enhanced by three times from Rs.50,000 to
Rs.1,50,000 per month. Higher salary will also be allowed in specific deserving
cases. The salary of other coaches has also been enhanced from Rs.30, 000 to
Rs.75, 000 per month. This will incentivise good coaches.
NSFs have been allowed to procure equipment upto
Rs.10 lakh. Above that amount, the procurement will be done by Sports Authority
of India (SAI).
Evaluation of athletes’ performance from Sports Science point of view has been
allowed. An amount of Rs.1500/- per athlete per international participation (if
camp is not held before competition) for undergoing evaluation from Sports
Science and Medical Fitness point of view will be paid by the Government.
SUCCESS STORY OF
DUTEE CHAND, SPRINTER
Sprinter
Dutee Chand, the daughter of a weaver couple from Orissa persuaded the highest
court in sport to give a landmark judgement that challenges gender guidelines,
set by the sporting world.
Dutee
successfully knocked at the doors of the Lausanne based Court of Arbitration
for Sports (CAS) which declared void the International Athletic body’s
rules which debar athletes with hyperandrogenism- deemed excessive but
naturally occurring testosterone – from competing in female category.
During
July, 2014, the Athletics Federation of India had removed Dutee’s name from
the team for the Commonwealth Games after she was tested for hyperandrogenism.
However, instead of opting for therapy or surgery, Dutee decided to challenge
the IAAF regulations governing females with hyperandrogenism. In a historic
decision, the CAS suspended the IAAF regulations which make athletes with
Hyperandrogenism ineligible to compete in the female category and allowed Dutee
to participate in National and International meets for a period of two years.
CAS has also put the onus on IAAF to provide scientific evidence that there is
a link between enhanced performance and testosterone in hyperandrogenic
athletes. The Sports Authority of India (SAI) extended full support including
financial assistance to Miss Dutee Chand in her legal battle.
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