The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved an expanded Khelo India Scheme and an enhanced Assistance to National Sports Federations (ANSF) scheme, with a combined outlay of ₹36,441 crore for 2026-27 to 2030-31. The outlay is nearly eight times that of the previous Khelo India Scheme. The scheme is aligned with Khelo Bharat Niti 2025 and the National Education Policy 2020.
The government says the aim is a pathway from school playgrounds and village sports fields to the Olympic podium, so that no talent goes undiscovered because of geography, economic background or lack of opportunity. It also describes the scheme as the foundation for longer-term ambitions, including the 2030 Commonwealth Games and India's bid to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The revamped scheme covers talent identification, scientific training, international competition and Olympic preparation in one pathway. The institutions along it are National Centres of Excellence, Khelo India Centres of Excellence, SAI Training Centres, Khelo India Accredited Academies, Khelo India Centres and the Youth Sports Companies of the Armed Forces.
Two new school initiatives, Khelo India Feeder Schools and Khelo India Utkrishta Vidyalayas, will integrate sports with mainstream education and allow talented children to be identified and nurtured early.
A new category, Emerging Khelo India Athletes (E-KIAs), will sit alongside the existing Khelo India Athletes programme and expand the structured athlete development system nearly ten-fold. Talent identification will involve Talent Identification Development Committees, Zonal Committees, Talent Scouts, High Performance Directors and High Performance Managers. The progression runs from grassroots competitions to Khelo India and then to the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS).
The scheme supports school, university, regional and sport-specific leagues and national championships, with special emphasis on women athletes, para-athletes and indigenous sports. It also backs the National Games and the hosting of major international events in India.
The Fit India Movement will be expanded, with campaigns on active lifestyles, women's participation, outreach in border and remote areas, and sports-based initiatives against substance abuse. A National Coach Accreditation Board (NCAB) will standardise coaching qualifications and build the capacity of coaches and support staff. A unified digital sports platform will bring together athlete databases, infrastructure, competitions, coaching resources, talent assessments, funding and Fit India participation. Collaboration with private academies and corporate partners will be deepened.
The enhanced ANSF scheme, approved for 2026-31, will fund coaching, sports science, modern equipment, international exposure, coaching camps, foreign experts and participation in major international competitions. It will also support sports cooperation with Global South countries and promote India's indigenous sports abroad.
Khelo India was launched in 2017 by merging the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Abhiyan, the Urban Sports Infrastructure Scheme and the National Sports Talent Search Scheme. Its pillars are training centres, coaches and support staff, sports science and technology, competitions and leagues, and modern infrastructure. It aims for one Khelo India Training Centre in every district and for India to be among the leading sporting nations by 2036.
Its Games began as the Khelo India School Games in New Delhi in 2018, renamed Khelo India Youth Games in 2019. University and Winter Games followed in 2020, Para Games in 2023, Beach Games and Water Sports Festival in 2025 and Tribal Games in 2026. More than 63,000 athletes have taken part since 2018.
The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports received a record ₹4,479.88 crore in Union Budget 2026-27, up from ₹1,219 crore in 2013-14.
TOPS, launched in September 2014 and revamped in April 2018, gives elite athletes foreign training, competition exposure, specialised coaching, equipment and a ₹50,000 monthly stipend. Its Development Group supports juniors with ₹25,000 a month. As of April 2026 it supported 51 Core Athletes, 52 Para Core Athletes and 130 Development Athletes.
Khelo India Rising Talent Identification (KIRTI) identifies talent among children aged 9-18 through standardised assessments, Talent Assessment Centres, artificial intelligence and data analytics. It targets a top-10 sporting nation by 2036 and top-five by 2047. So far 174 Talent Assessment Centres have completed 1,87,921 assessments.
India's Olympic medals rose from two at Rio 2016 to seven at Tokyo 2020 and six at Paris 2024. At the Paralympics the tally went from four at Rio 2016 to 19 at Tokyo 2020 and a record 29 at Paris 2024. At the Asian Games India won 57 medals at Incheon 2014, 69 at Jakarta 2018 and a record 107 at Hangzhou 2023. At the Commonwealth Games the count was 64 at Glasgow 2014, 66 at Gold Coast 2018 and 61 at Birmingham 2022. India is competing at Glasgow 2026, from 23 July to 2 August 2026.
The government calls the revamped scheme a national mission for Viksit Bharat@2047.
With reference to the Khelo India Scheme, consider the following statements:
Which of the statements given above are correct?
Consider the following pairs:
Programme : Description
How many of the pairs given above are correctly matched?
Consider the following statements:
Statement-I: India's medal tally at the Asian Games rose from 57 at Incheon 2014 to 69 at Jakarta 2018 and 107 at Hangzhou 2023.
Statement-II: India's medal tally at the Commonwealth Games rose steadily from 64 at Glasgow 2014 to 66 at Gold Coast 2018 and 70 at Birmingham 2022.
Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?
