Govt keen to make India sports goods manufacturing hub: Mandaviya

New Delhi, Aug 30 (PTI) India will roll out a dedicated sports goods manufacturing policy by the end of the year, which will not only help nurture sporting talent but also make the country a prominent exporter of sports goods globally, said Union sports minister Mansukh Mandaviya, here on Saturday.

Athletes in several sports disciplines have to rely on costly imported equipment to compete at the highest level to give them the cutting edge, but the minister said that by November-December this year a scheme would be launched which would bolster manufacturing of sports goods and equipment in a big way.

"By November-December, a scheme will be launched so that the country can become the best sports goods manufacturer, one that provides top-class facilities, empowers the entire ecosystem and (helps India) emerge as a prominent exporter of sports goods globally." said Mandaviya during the sports goods and manufacturing conclave here.

He said that India had the ability to achieve anything and that the country was looking at making sports medicines, sports infrastructure, sports literature, and sports education design a part of the bigger sports goods manufacturing project.

"The sports ecosystem is growing at a very fast pace. Our country has the capability to achieve everything. What we need to understand are the challenges ahead. In the coming days, how do we move forward in the sports manufacturing sector? "We can also make sports medicines, sports infrastructure, sports literature, and sports education design a part of sports goods manufacturing. There are lots of challenges like GST... we must make a task force and have schemes and policies for sports manufacturing." he said during the Mandaviya added that the ministry would reach out to stakeholders to draw out a pathway to strengthen the sector to drive greater production and export.

"Sports goods manufacturing sector is the priority for the government. The first pillar of the National Sports Governance Bill was athlete-centric governance. It also addressed the disputes of the federations. This is an important conclave, a part of the reforms in the sports sector which focuses on how we can intervene in sports goods manufacturing," he said.

"Policies will be made through discussions with all stakeholders, including NITI Aayog and the manufacturers. The work of policy framing will be completed by September," he added. PTI SG AM AM AM