Parliament Question: Monthly Stipend for the Athletes

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF YOUTH AFFAIRS AND SPORTS DEPARTMENT OF SPORTS LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3467 TO BE ANSWERED ON 11.08.2025 Monthly Stipend for the Athletes 3467. Shri Manickam Tagore B Shri Suresh Kumar Shetkar Shri Vijayakumar Alias Vijay Vasanth Will the Minister of YOUTH AFFAIRS AND SPORTS be pleased to state: (a) the details of the funding source of the total budget allocated for providing Rs. 50,000 monthly assistance to 3,000 athletes and whether it is part of any existing scheme or a new initiative for the forthcoming 2036 Olympic games; (b) the eligibility criteria for athletes selected to receive the Rs. 50,000 monthly stipend under the said scheme; (c) whether junior, senior, and para-athletes all are included under this scheme; (d) the manner in which the Government ensure that financial assistance provided to athletes is used for training and development and whether there is any audit or monitoring mechanism in place; (e) the number of athletes receiving the monthly stipend, discipline-wise and whether any cap or quota for the specific sports and if so, the details thereof; (f) the steps being taken by the Government to identify and support the talented athletes from rural, tribal and economically weaker sections; and(g) whether there are any dedicated scholarships or mentorship programmes for athletes from disadvantaged areas? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF YOUTH AFFAIRS AND SPORTS [DR. MANSUKH MANDAVIYA] (a) The athletes under Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) in Core Group are eligible for monthly stipend of Rs. 50,000/- as Out of Pocket Allowance (OPA) and this scheme is funded through the National Sports Development Fund (NSDF). (b) Athletes are inducted under TOPS Core category when they satisfy benchmark criteria which are decided by the Mission Olympic Cell and are derived from the performance of the medal winning athletes at prominent events such as Olympic Games, Asian Games, World Championship etc., at International level. (c) All athletes inducted into TOPS Core category are eligible for the monthly stipend. (d) The monthly stipend is provided to cover the sports related ,day to day expenses of the athlete and no utilization certificate is sought for the stipend. Financial assistance under TOPS is also provided, in addition to the monthly OPA, for requirements related to training and participation in international competitions for which the athlete is required to submit utilization certificate in respect of the expenditure incurred. (e) The monthly stipend is provided to the athlete as long as he / she is covered under the TOP Scheme and there is no cap or quota for specific sports under TOPS Scheme. The number of athletes receiving the monthly stipend is as per Annexure – I & II(f) The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports implements various schemes to identify and support the athletes, including those from rural, tribal and economically weaker sections such as:  Khelo India - National Programme for Development of Sports;  Assistance to National Sports Federations;  National Sports Development Fund which also supports TOP scheme ; and  Sports Authority of India related schemes. Details are available in the public domain on the website of this Ministry and of Sports Authority of India. Further, Khelo India Programme encourages children/youth from rural/tribal areas and weaker sections through the following: a) Khelo India Centres (1057 Notified) at the district level provide opportunity to be trained by a past champion athlete and aids preparation for participation in state/national level tournaments; b) Khelo India State Centre of Excellence (KISCE): Provides high quality coaching, sports science manpower, to nurture and support the athletes. Currently, 34 KISCEs are notified in 33 states/UTs; c) Khelo India Talent Identification and Development: Athletes are selected from various national championships, assessment camps etc. and 2808 such KIAs have been notified and are being trained in Accredited academies notified for this purpose. Support per trainee per annum is ₹ 6,28,400/-. d) Khelo India Games: Acts as platform for athletes, including athletes from rural, tribal and economically weaker sections and 19 Editions of Khelo India Games have been conducted with the participation of more than 56,000 athletes so far. e) Sports for Women: Khelo India Women’s League are conducted and a total of 1310 competitions have been organized for Women athletes in 29 disciplines with 138875 participants. (f) “Promotion of rural and indigenous/tribal games”, sub component under the “Promotion of Inclusive through sports” component of Khelo India Scheme is specifically dedicated towards promotion of sports in rural and tribal areas.Further, Sports Authority of India is operating SAI Training Centre (STC), Extension Centre of STC, National Sports Talent Contest (NSTC) (its Sub-Schemes - Regular Schools, IGMA & Akharas) across rural, tribal areas to identify talented sportspersons at grassroots levels. Athletes are provided regular training on Residential and Non- Residential basis as per the approved norms of the Schemes. The details of SAI Centres in Rural, tribal and backward areas of the country are at Annexure-III. In addition to above, Come & Play scheme is functional in various SAI Centres across the country for the benefit of local athletes. (g) The Khelo India scheme provides comprehensive support to athletes, which includes scholarships, specialized training and coaching facilities, exposure to international competitions, and access to world-class training facilities. Under this scheme ₹6.28 lakhs per annum are given per Khelo India Athlete (which includes ₹10,000 per month out-of-pocket allowance for each KIA). 2808 Khelo India Athletes are being provided with this support under Khelo India Scheme. *****Annexure I ANNEXURE REFERED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (E) OF THE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3467 TO BE ANSWERED ON 11.08.2025 ASKED BY SHRI MANICKAM TAGORE B AND OTHERS REGARDING MONTHLY STIPEND FOR THE ATHLETES Sl. No. Sport Discipline No. of Athletes 1. Archery 10 2. Athletics 3 3. Badminton 7 4. Boxing 2 5. Shooting 18 6. Table Tennis 2 7. Weightlifting 1 8. Wrestling 7 Annexure II ANNEXURE REFERED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (E) OF THE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3467 TO BE ANSWERED ON 11.08.2025 ASKED BY SHRI MANICKAM TAGORE B AND OTHERS REGARDING MONTHLY STIPEND FOR THE ATHLETES Sl. No. Sports No. of Athletes 1. Para Archery 4 2. Para Athletics 25 3. Para Badminton 14 4. Para Canoe 1 5. Blind Judo 1 6. Para Powerlifting 1 7. Para Shooting 5 8. Para Table Tennis 1Annexure III ANNEXURE REFERED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (F) OF THE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3467 TO BE ANSWERED ON 11.08.2025 ASKED BY SHRI MANICKAM TAGORE B AND OTHERS REGARDING MONTHLY STIPEND FOR THE ATHLETES SAI CENTRES IN THE RURAL/ TRIBAL / BACKWARD AREAS OF THE COUNTRY Tribal/ Rural/ Other Regions STC Centre Name State backward areas Bilaspur Himachal Pradesh Rural Zirakpur Badal Punjab Rural Mastunasahib Punjab Rural Kokrajhar Assam Tribal Guwahati Solalgaon Assam Rural Utlou Manipur Rural Aizawl (Lunglei & Imphal Thenzawl) Mizoram Tribal Dimapur Nagaland Tribal Kolkata Nicobar Andaman & Nicobar Tribal Port Blair Andaman & Nicobar Rural Hazaribagh Jharkhand Rural Sundargarh Odisha Rural Lebong West Bengal Rural Lucknow Saifai Uttar Pradesh Rural LNCPE Androth Lakshadweep Tribal Mayiladuthurai Tamil Nadu Rural Extension Centres of STCs Gandhinagar LBS Govt. Degree Rajasthan Rural College, Kotputli Gandhinagar Sri Kalyan Singh Rajkiya Rajasthan Rural Sr.Sec. School, Jaipur Gandhinagar Jawahar Navodaya Rajasthan Rural Vidyala, Paota JaipurTribal/ Rural/ Other Regions STC Centre Name State backward areas Chandigarh Govt. Sr.Sec. School, Himachal Pradesh Rural Dhawal, Mandi Lucknow Gurukul Archery Uttar Pradesh Rural Academy, Tikri, Meerut Kolkata Ramakrishna Mission, Odisha Tribal Raygada Guwahati Dakha Devi Rasiwasia Assam Rural College, Chabua Regular Schools of NSTC Imphal Sainik School,Imphal Manipur Rural Sri Gurunanak Khalsa Rajasthan Gandhinagar School, Shriganganagar Rural IGMAs Zirakpur International Fateh Punjab Rural Academy, Jandiala, Guru, Amritsar Imphal The Sofia English Manipur Rural School,Wangmataba, Thoubal Imphal Panthoibi Thang -Ta & Manipur Rural Jagoi Sindam Shanglen LNCPE Vyasa Vidya Peetham Kerala Rural Kallekkad, Palakkad Distt. LNCPE Sri Vivekananda Tamilnadu Rural Vidyalayam, Kandha Podikara, Ambur Guwahati Martial Authority of Assam Tribal Assam Tengapara, Kokrajhar Adopted Akharas Gandhinagar Luv Kush Akhara, Rajasthan Rural BhilwaraTribal/ Rural/ Other Regions STC Centre Name State backward areas Gandhinagar Rajkiya Sardar Hr. Sec. Rajasthan Rural School Kotputli Gandhinagar Rajkiya Balika Sec. Rajasthan Rural School, Bansur, Alwar Gandhinagar Govt. Sr. Sec. School, Rajasthan Rural Bansur Gandhinagar Govt. Adarsh Sr. School, Rajasthan Rural Gunta, Shahpur Gandhinagar Govt. Sr. Sec. School, Rajasthan Rural Mardha, Kotputli Gandhinagar Govt. Sr. Sec. School, Rajasthan Rural Sunderpur, Kotputli Gandhinagar Govt. Sr.Sec. School, Rajasthan Rural Taskota, Kotputli Lucknow Meghu Pehalwan Uttar Pradesh Rural Vyayamshala, Varanasi Lucknow Satayanarayan Singh Uttar Pradesh Rural Khel Vikas Sansthan, Mirzapur Lucknow Bachan Singh, Uttar Pradesh Rural Muzaffarnagar Lucknow Arya Vyayamshala, Uttar Pradesh Rural Chhaproli, Baghpat Guwahati Langhin Tinali Sports Assam Rural Asso., Langhin, Anglong Mumbai Jai Shivray Education Maharashtra Rural Society, Kolhapur Mumbai Jog Maharaj Maharashtra Rural Vyayamshala, Pune. Mumbai Kishanveer Akhara, Bhuij, Maharashtra Rural SataraTribal/ Rural/ Other Regions STC Centre Name State backward areas Mumbai MN Deshmukh Arts Maharashtra Rural Science College, Ahemadnagar Mumbai L.T Rangnath Markad Maharashtra Rural Krida & Yuvak Mandal, Pune Mumbai Veer Hanuman Kala Maharashtra Rural Krida, Sangli Mumbai Vishwatmak Jangli Maharashtra Rural Maharaj Wrestling Centre, Ahamadnagar Sonepat Bhumanand Akahara Delhi Rural Sonepat Arya Samaj Mandir Delhi Rural Sonepat Shahed Bhagat Singh Haryana Rural AkharaMirchpur Sonepat Ch. Bharat Singh Akhara Haryana Rural Sonepat Lala Diwan Chand Haryana Rural Kolkata Gurukul Ashram, Amsena, Odisha Backward area Nuapada *****