India’s Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday (Feb 1) presented the budget for the financial year 2025-26 as the nation gears up to put its footprint on the global stage. Sports has been a key contributor to India’s global image, and the sector was certainly not disappointed after funds were increased to INR 10 billion ($115 million) for 2025-26, up from INR 8 billion ($92 million) in 2024-25. Speaking exclusively to WION’s Aditya Pimpale, Sports for All founder, Rishikesh Joshi, reckoned the funds are promising for grassroots athletes. 

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Expert thoughts on sports budget

India had a successful Paris Olympics in 2024, where they won six medals, including a silver. Indian athletes have made the nation proud in several national and international tournaments. Saturday’s budget comes as a welcome addition to India’s growing sports power as the nation tried to challenge several global powers. 

“The sports budget has seen an overall 10% increase. The standout for me is that Khelo India continues to be a cornerstone for developing grassroots sports across India. The INR 10 billion ($115 million) allocated this year, marking an 11% increase, is certainly promising for grassroots athletes and is already yielding results, as seen in India’s recent clean sweep at the Kho-Kho World Cup. This highlights the tangible impact of increased funding at the grassroots level,” Joshi said in the exclusive conversation. 

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“Given India’s performance, it’s essential to also consider boosting funding for elite athletes and national-level competitions. Strengthening the budget for these events would help sustain and enhance India’s performance on the global stage,” added Joshi.

WION also spoke to Sreekar Channapragada, co-founder of MGD1, as he reckons the current budget needs to be boosted by 10 times if India are to win more medals and be competitive against global powers.

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“Sports budget is in the right direction, but a lot more is needed. If we’re looking to win international medals and strive for excellence, then the budgets need to be more than 10 times what it is now. Sports not only bring laurels to the nation and bring in a culture of fitness, but they also generate employment for the youth. We need to use the budgets to create excellence centres where potentials are worked with to create world-class athletes,” said Channapragada.