"Union Cabinet approves eight-fold funding boost for Khelo India Scheme"
Khelo India Scheme
Centrally Sponsored Scheme for grassroots sports development and talent identification across India
Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS)
elite-athlete support programme for those near international podium contention
India's sports policy has historically suffered from structural neglect — inadequate infrastructure, poor talent identification systems, and a disconnect between physical education in schools and elite athletic development. The state's role in sports promotion gained constitutional grounding through Article 49 of the Directive Principles and the National Sports Policy, which has been revised periodically to align with international competitive goals. The Sports Authority of India (SAI), established under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, has been the primary institutional vehicle for athlete development, operating national centres of excellence and managing elite training programmes.
The Khelo India Programme was launched as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme to revive the sports culture at the grassroots level, consolidating earlier fragmented schemes. Its design philosophy drew from the recognition that India's Olympic underperformance was rooted not in a lack of talent but in the absence of a systematic pipeline — from school-level identification to elite competition. The programme introduced the concept of Khelo India Athletes (KIAs), providing annual scholarships and training support to identified talent across disciplines. Complementing this, the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) was designed to support elite athletes already on the cusp of international podium finishes, creating a two-tier architecture of grassroots development and elite support.
The Khelo India Scheme operates as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme, meaning costs are shared between the Union Government and states, with states responsible for infrastructure maintenance and local implementation. Its core logic is a bottom-to-top talent pipeline: identify children at the school and club level, provide structured coaching through accredited academies and Khelo India Centres, and graduate the most promising athletes to national centres of excellence and eventually to TOPS support.
The scheme's institutional architecture includes Khelo India Centres (at the district level), State Centres of Excellence, National Centres of Excellence, and accredited academies affiliated with National Sports Federations. The newly approved phase significantly expands this network — from approximately one centre per district (over 1,000 currently) to an average of two or three per district. …
Which of the following statements is/are correct regarding Smart India Hackathon 2017?
1.It is a centrally sponsored scheme for developing every city of our country into Smart Cities in a decade.
2.It is an initiative to identify new digital technology innovations for solving the many problems faced by our country.
3.It is a programme aimed at making all the financial transactions in our country completely digital in a decade.
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
With reference to the Khelo India Scheme, consider the following statements:
1.It is a Central Sector Scheme fully funded by the Union Government.
2.The new phase approved by the Union Cabinet has a total outlay of ₹36,441 crore for 2026–31.
3.The Emerging Khelo India Athletes initiative aims to expand the identified talent pool to approximately 28,000 athletes.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Assertion (A): The new phase of the Khelo India Scheme integrates sports development with the National Education Policy through Feeder Schools and Utkrishta Vidyalaya initiatives.
Reason (R): Physical education teachers in government schools are currently excluded from the Khelo India coaching ecosystem under the scheme's design.
Which of the following is correct?
Which of the following is a stated objective of the National Coach Accreditation Board proposed under the new phase of the Khelo India Scheme?
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