India's Sports Ecosystem

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India's Olympic ranking fell from 48th in Tokyo (2020) to 71st in Paris.

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• India won six medals in Paris with no gold medals (one silver, five bronze), down from seven in Tokyo (one gold, two silver, four bronze). 
• Despite the decline, Paris was still India’s third-best Olympic performance, better than Rio 2016’s two medals. 
• Also, this decline contrasts with improved performances in other events like the 2022 Commonwealth Games and 2021 Summer Deaflympics. 
  • Thus, the recent Olympic slide highlights gaps in India’s sports ecosystem despite multiple initiatives taken to improve India’s sports ecosystem. 

India’s Sporting Ecosystem 

• Sports is a state subject. Thus, the responsibility for promotion/development of sports in the country, including providing sports facilities, rests primarily with the respective State / UT Governments.
• However, Central government, through its various schemes, supplements the efforts for state government 
• Sports generates revenue and raises country’s soft power while also having significant contribution to general health and well-being of the players. 
  • Despite these benefits, only around 6% of India’s population participates in sports, which is much lower than around 20% in countries like the US, Australia ​​ and as high as 60% in Japan.

Challenges that persist in India’s sporting ecosystem

• Talent identification issues: Despite being the world’s most populous country, India sent only 117 athletes to the Paris Olympics, compared to 594 from the U.S., 572 from France, and 460 from Australia. 
  • This is due to a lack of early-stage talent identification and inadequate scouting mechanisms. 
• Resource constraint: India’s sports budget is low as compared to countries like US, Germany, and China. Fund underutilization is also an issue.
  • For instance, the Khelo India scheme spent only Rs 318 crore out of Rs 500 crore allocated in 2019-20 (Parliamentary Standing Committee on Human Resource Development).
• Infrastructure Gaps: Sports infrastructure is limited, especially in educational institutions and underdeveloped states like Bihar and Jharkhand.
  • Most facilities that meet international standards are concentrated in a few states like Haryana, Punjab, and Karnataka.
• Governance Issues: India's sports governance is dominated by politicians and bureaucrats and often suffers from corruption and unethical conduct. 
  • For example, In January 2023, many Olympic medallists accused the then Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president and the coaches of the Federation of sexual harassment.
• Mismanagement of athletes: For example, Vinesh Phogat's disqualification from Paris Olympic for being 100 grams overweight cost India a confirmed silver and a potential gold medal.
  • Similarly, Antim Phangal lost her bout due to exhaustion after starving for 48 hours to lose weight. 
• Other Challenges: Lack of awareness about sports opportunities and government supports, shortage of coaching staff, gender disparities, inadequate attract private sector support, etc. 

Way ahead for strengthening India’s Sports Ecosystem

• Driving mindset change: Parents should be made aware of advantages that students with state or national level accreditation in sports enjoy like reservations at higher educational institutes and preferences in government jobs. 
  • Separately, corporates should inculcate sports as a constructive means for wellness among employees.
• Increase the talent pool 
  • Nourish younger talent pool: Implement more tournaments in schools and community-based sports programs, provide nutrition support and address social barriers and gender inequality in sports.
    • The ‘one panchayat, one playground’ initiative by the Kerala Government is a parameter that can be advocated across States to promote sporting culture at the grassroots.
  • One State-One Sport policy: Region-specific traditional sports needs to be promoted to ensure mass participation and cultivate an interest among people.
    • Localised sports mega events such as ‘Rural Olympics’, on the lines of what the Rajasthan government has done, should be promoted countrywide. 
• Improving governance structure of sports federation: Facilitate independent form of recruitment for top positions and bringing transparency both in the functioning of federations as well as policymaking. 
• Corporate funding for the sports sector: As Indian firms mostly prefer to deploy their CSR money through NGOs, there is a need to incentivise the formation of NGOs specialised in sports across the country.
• Supporting multiple disciplines: Indian corporates, and entrepreneurs are actively participating in Indian Premier League (IPL), which ensures that these games receive consistent publicity. 
  • IPL for games like Badminton, Football, Tennis, and Volleyball by sponsoring leagues that facilitates owning teams and building sports facilities should be encouraged. 
• Ensuring Accountability: Implement performance metrics for nutritionists and support staff of athletes and fix the accountability for last-moment mismanagement.