The Union Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya confirmed that the government is ready to bring the sports bill in the budget session of Parliament which will help in tweaking some rules to get more Indian sports administrators into international bodies.
"I won't let sports suffer... 95 per cent want the Sports Bill to come. Yes, there are some small reservations from some NSFs (National Sports Federations), which we will take care of," he said.
"There are some clauses in the 70-year age provision which we need to consider. For example on the international platform, a person like Randhir Singh needed 50 years to build his rapport. He worked for all these years and has now become the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) president," said Mandaviya in an interaction with the media.
Even, Randhir Singh had recently asked the government to make certain changes in its policy, especially, which restricts the tenure of elected sports federation officials to three terms of four years each, saying it was a major hurdle in the way of Indian sports administrators seeking bigger roles in international bodies.
Singh had said that 12 years was very little time for a sports administrator to make a mark at the national level, leaving aside building relationships at the international level and seeking bigger roles there.
As per the Sports Code, an NSF chief can serve a maximum of 12 years or three terms of four years each. Besides, the president, secretary and treasurer of NSF cease to hold posts upon attaining the age of 70 years.
"If I don't consider that thing (Singh's suggestion), no one from India can contribute to international sport. So, I have kept that window open. Whoever is in the international platform, the 70-year rule doesn't apply to him or her," the minister added.
The minister also said that the government has introduced a seamless and user-friendly platform, called the National Sports Repository System (NSRS) for athletes, coaches and academies so that they can register themselves directly for awards and government schemes.
Once registered, NSRS users can update their details, achievements and training history, among other information. It will also provide comprehensive performance assessment metrics, detailed reports, and analyses.
Besides, NSRS will be integrated with the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) portal to streamline the direct disbursal of cash awards to athletes and coaches, thus ensuring efficiency and transparency.
The ministry is also planning a workshop with NSFs to integrate their respective portals with NSRS as it will ensure the continuity of athlete information and establish a comprehensive athlete history.
The system will also integrate with state governments and anti-doping portals, ensuring a unified repository for efficient management.
Khelo India to be integrated with NSRS:
The minister said that the Khelo India Games would remain his ministry's top priority and the talent identified through the programme will also be integrated with NSRS.
"For talent identification, Khelo India School Games, Khelo India University Games and Khelo India Youth Games will produce talents in the next three years. No federation can interfere in this," Mandaviya continued.
He said, "NSRS is the way to go. We can't let athletes suffer. The platform will be used for talent identification... every athlete's detail will be there. If someone has won a medal in the Asian Games or the Olympics, he or she doesn't have to approach the respective NSF for certification for any job or anything."
The certificate will be generated automatically from NSRS," Mandaviya said.
Khelo India Winter Games from Jan 23:
The minister also announced the dates for the Khelo India Winter Games, which include the 'Ice Games' and 'Snow Games'.
While Leh will host the Ice Games from January 23 to 27 next year, the Snow Games will be organised in Gulmarg from February 22 to 25.
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