Khelo India Sports Goods Manufacturing Scheme: ₹1,856 Crore to Make India a Hub for Sports Equipment
The Union Cabinet approved the Khelo India Sports Goods Manufacturing Scheme with an outlay of about ₹1,856.67 crore for eight years, 2026-27 to 2033-34. The scheme was first announced in the Union Budget 2026-27.
Its aim is to grow India's sports goods industry, cut dependence on imports, create jobs and make India a global supplier of good-quality sports equipment. Most of this industry today is made up of small units (MSMEs) in clusters such as Meerut (Uttar Pradesh), Jalandhar-Ludhiana (Punjab) and Jammu.
The centrepiece is a set of Sports Goods Manufacturing Zones, reported as four integrated zones of over 300 acres each. They will be built using industrial parks under the BHAVYA scheme and parks developed by the National Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (NICDC).
About ₹1,130 crore goes to investment and output support. As reported, anchor investors putting in at least ₹100 crore can get 20% capital support, and manufacturers investing ₹10 crore or more can get turnover-linked incentives of up to 15%.
About ₹105 crore is for getting or renewing certification from International Sports Federations (reported support: 70% of first-time costs and 50% of renewal costs). Other parts cover upgrading existing clusters with the states, research and testing centres, skilling, branding, and grants of up to ₹20 lakh for start-ups registered with DPIIT.
Khelo India Scheme: India's Flagship Programme for Sports
The Khelo India Scheme is the main central government programme to develop sports in India, from the playground in a village to the Olympic podium. It is run by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. It pays for sports infrastructure, finds and trains talented young athletes, organises national games for schoolchildren and university students, and promotes fitness among ordinary people. "Khelo India" simply means "Play, India".
The new Khelo India Sports Goods Manufacturing Scheme extends the Khelo India brand from playing sport to making the equipment for it. As more children play under the main scheme and India prepares for big events like the 2030 Commonwealth Games, demand for good equipment will rise. The new scheme wants this demand to be met by Indian factories rather than imports.
National Industrial Corridor Development Programme (NICDP)
The National Industrial Corridor Development Programme (NICDP) is the Government of India's plan to build modern, ready-to-use industrial cities and parks along major transport routes. An "industrial corridor" is a long belt of land along a highway, railway or freight line where factories, warehouses, housing and power are planned together. The idea is that a factory owner gets land, roads, water, power and a nearby port or railway at one place, and can start production quickly.
The sports goods scheme does not build new land from scratch. Its manufacturing zones will sit inside parks developed under BHAVYA and by NICDC, so that sports goods makers get ready land, power, roads and testing facilities in one place and can scale up quickly.
Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme
The Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme is a government plan that gives companies a cash reward for producing more in India. The reward is a small percentage of the extra sales a company makes from goods made in India, compared to a base year. If a company does not raise its production, it gets nothing. This makes the incentive "linked" to real output.
The Khelo India Sports Goods Manufacturing Scheme borrows the PLI logic: support is tied to how much a company actually produces and sells. Along with capital support for anchor investors, this is meant to pull large manufacturers into the sector and help small Indian makers grow.
- Scheme: Khelo India Sports Goods Manufacturing Scheme; outlay about ₹1,856.67 crore
- Period: 2026-27 to 2033-34 (eight years); announced in Union Budget 2026-27
- Investment and output support: about ₹1,130 crore; 20% capital support for anchor investors (₹100 crore+); turnover-linked incentives up to 15% for investments of ₹10 crore+
- International federation certification support: about ₹105 crore (70% of first-time cost, 50% of renewal cost)
- Manufacturing zones: reported four zones of 300+ acres each, using BHAVYA and NICDC industrial parks
- Start-up grants: up to ₹20 lakh for DPIIT-recognised start-ups
- Major existing clusters: Meerut (Uttar Pradesh), Jalandhar-Ludhiana (Punjab), Jammu