Parliament Question: Promotion of Indigenous and Rural Sports

Government of India Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports Department of Sports LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1161 TO BE ANSWERED ON 27.07.2026 Promotion of Indigenous and Rural Sports †1161. Shri Nilesh Dnyandev Lanke: Smt. Delkar Kalaben Mohanbhai: Dr. Shivaji Bandappa Kalge: Shri Gyaneshwar Patil: Shri Bhumare Sandipanrao Asaram: Will the Minister of YOUTH AFFAIRS AND SPORTS be pleased to state: (a) the details of the steps taken by the Government to promote indigenous and rural sports in various States of the country during the last five years and the current year; (b) the details of the financial assistance provided for organizing competitions and imparting training in such sports in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and the UT of Dadra and Nagar Haveli; (c) the number of indigenous games included in the national level sports events during the last five years and the current year, event- wise; and (d) the impact of the said initiatives on the level of participation in sports at the grassroots level in the said States and UTs along with the number of participants enrolled under the said programmes? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF YOUTH AFFAIRS & SPORTS [DR. MANSUKH MANDAVIYA] (a) to (d) ‘Sports’ being a State subject, the responsibility for Page 1 of 3development of sports, including taking steps for the promotion of indigenous and rural sports, providing financial assistance for competitions and training, and expanding grassroots participation, rests primarily with the respective State/Union Territory Governments. The Union Government supplements their efforts by bridging critical gaps. The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports implements the following schemes for development of sports in the country, including for indigenous and rural sports: i. Khelo India – National Programme for Development of Sports; ii. Assistance to National Sports Federations (NSFs); iii. Cash Incentives to Medal Winners in International Sports Events and their coaches; iv. National Sports Awards; v. Pension to Meritorious Sportspersons; vi. Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay National Welfare Program for Sportspersons; vii. National Sports Development Fund; viii. Running Sports Training centres through Sports Authority of India (SAI); and ix. National Centre for Sports Science and Research (NCSSR). Details of the above schemes are available in the public domain on the websites of this Ministry and the Sports Authority of India. In addition, the ‘Promotion of rural and indigenous/tribal games’ sub- component of the Khelo India Scheme, is specifically dedicated to the development and promotion of rural and indigenous games in the country including the state of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and UT of Dadar and Nagar Haveli. Indigenous games like Mallakhamb, Kalaripayattu, Gatka, Thang-Ta, Yogasana and Silambam have been identified for promotion under this component. The details of funds allocated and expenditure incurred under various Sports Development Schemes of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports across the country including the state of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and UT of Dadar and Nagar Haveli, including for competitions and training for indigenous and rural sports, during the last five years are as under: Page 2 of 3(amount in ₹ crore) Financial Year Funds allocated Expenditure incurred 2025-26 2347.14 2228.88 2024-25 2332.50 2136.97 2023-24 2380.86 2329.35 2022-23 1907.69 1879.99 2021-22 1993.00 1748.76 In addition, financial assistance is also provided under the Assistance to National Sports Federations Scheme for indigenous disciplines such as Yogasana, Kabaddi and Kho-Kho for training, coaching camps, equipment, competitions and athlete support. During the last five years, three indigenous sports, namely Yogasana, Kho Kho and Kabaddi, have been included in national- level sporting events. Further, five indigenous disciplines namely Mallakhamb, Thang-Ta, Kalaripayattu, Gatka and Yogasana have been included in multiple editions of the Khelo India Youth Games and Khelo India University Games, while Silambam was also featured as a demonstration sport during the Khelo India Youth Games held in Tamil Nadu. These initiatives have strengthened grassroots participation by expanding opportunities for training, competitions and talent identification through the Khelo India framework, Sports Authority of India promotional schemes and support to National Sports Federations. Further, under the revised Assistance to National Sports Federations norms, National Sports Federations are required to earmark at least 20% of their annual budget for grassroots development, which is expected to further enhance participation and enrolment under such programmes. ***** Page 3 of 3