DEHRADUN: The recent conclusion of Uttarakhand's budget session has left the state's medal winners from the 38th National Games in a quandary. Due to the lack of budget allocation for sports development, there is uncertainty over the distribution of prize money to these athletes.
According to government sources, the biggest challenge currently facing the Sports Department is to disburse over ₹12 crore in prize money to the 103 medal winners of the National Games, who have put in tremendous effort to achieve historic performances for the pride of the state. However, only ₹1.25 crore has been allocated for this purpose.
Speaking to TNIE, Congress Deputy Leader in the State Assembly Bhuvan Kapdi expressed his concerns regarding the state budget.
"While the budget speech praised the historic performances of Uttarakhand's athletes, the reality is that funding for athlete incentives, oversight of international sports resources, and sports development has been reduced to zero," he stated.
Kapdi further highlighted, "Various sports academies in the state, including the Champawat Girls Sports College and the Sports Development Fund, have received no budget allocation. This raises doubts about the government's commitment to transforming 'Dev Bhoomi' into a 'Khel Bhoomi' (sports land) in the near future."
He emphasized that the dream of fostering a thriving sports culture in Uttarakhand seems increasingly distant.
In his budget speech, Finance Minister Premchand Agarwal announced the establishment of a sports university in Haldwani.
However, only a token amount of ₹1,000 crore has been allocated for the project at this time. Experts believe that this token allocation signifies that additional funding will be provided later.
"It is uncertain when and how much supplementary funding will be released," they noted. Until this funding is received, there will be no clarity or framework for the preparations regarding the sports university.
In the recent budget allocation, a total of ₹250 crores has been earmarked for sports under both revenue and capital heads.
This amount must cover departmental salaries and other expenses, in addition to the development of sports. Last year (2024-25), the department received over ₹500 crores for the National Games, marking a direct cut of ₹250 crores this time around. Furthermore, a proposal has been submitted for a budget of ₹864 crores for 2025-26.
"This budget includes expenses for maintaining international-level sports facilities, establishing academies for various sports, constructing a women's sports college in Champawat, setting up a sports university in Haldwani, and funding for sports development initiatives," officials stated.
Additionally, ₹16 crores were requested for the Emerging Fund to encourage new athletes, but only ₹10 crores have been allocated.