Khelo India Mission UPSC NOTE

Khelo India mission

Launched in 2017, Khelo India is a flagship initiative of the Government of India's Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
It aims to revive India's sporting culture at the grassroots level and establish the country as a global sporting power.

Basic details:

Scholarship Scheme: Annually awards financial assistance of ₹5 lakh for eight years to 1000 talented young athletes across various sports.
Khelo India Youth Games: A national-level annual event for athletes under 17 years old.
Khelo India University Games: A national-level annual event for athletes under 21 years old.
Khelo India School Games: Organized by School Games Federation of India under the Khelo India initiative.
Khelo India Centres of Excellence (KISCE): Upgraded existing sports facilities to provide training infrastructure for promising athletes.

Benefits:

Khelo India mission's achievements and its future potential

In this cycle of the Khelo India Games, we had a few firsts.
Primarily aimed at spreading the good word on sports and boosting capacity-building.
All the States to stage sporting events of importance, the Youth Games were held in the south for the first time.
Tamil Nadu’s multi-city approach was a success with fans having free and easy access to venues.
Similarly, for the first time, the University Games were staged across seven north-eastern States, with Assam hosting 16 different sports.

The Northeast has given India some of its top boxers and hockey and football players.
It was in the fitness of things that Mizoram hosted men’s football and Sikkim, boxing.
The government is not only promoting Olympic disciplines, but also giving adequate attention to indigenous sports like Yogasana, Gatka, Mallakhamba, Silambam and Kalaripayattu.
The participation in these sports has been overwhelming.
It’s been the government’s endeavour to offer every State the opportunity to stage a major sports event.

Enabling Ladakh to stage a portion of the Khelo India Winter Games for the first time in February is a case in point.
It was heartening to see Ladakh excel in ice hockey and ice skating.
The confidence in hosting a national event of importance will only make the States and UTs.
The Khelo India mission has been a solid learning process.
At the heart of this mission are the athletes, coaches, and other support staff.
Athletes selected to represent India in international competitions must only focus on their goals and nothing else.

It is incumbent upon us to provide the right environment and ecosystem to make the athletes shine.
Sports administration is all about setting transparent and stringent processes and executing them with some flexibility.
It is important to produce a system which promotes ease of living and does not give anxiety to athletes.
The government continues to yearn for that perfect system.
Sports always works on a cause-and-effect basis.

The consistent international success of sportspersons in the Khelo India ecosystem is a testament to the government’s success in sticking to the right causes.
For example, the creation and upgradation of sports infrastructure was a priority.
More than 300 sports infrastructure projects have been approved in 34 States/UT at a cost of more than ₹3,000 crore.
Identifying talent and nurturing them is a challenging task and one that drives the Khelo India movement.

For the selection of genuine talent, the government has a two-tier structure consisting of a Scouting Committee and a Developmental Panel for training.
At present, close to 2,800 athletes in 21 sports disciplines (including para sports) have been chosen as Khelo India athletes after being selected from various national championships, open selection trials, assessment camps, and from the Khelo India Games.