Overview
Central sector scheme (2022-23 to 2025-26) funding fellowships, seminars, foreign experts, research grants and sports publications to build sports science, coaching and technical expertise in India.
Key details
- Age
- Fellowships: up to 55 years. Research assistance: up to 58 years. Indian nationals based in India only (PIO/OCI not eligible).
- Amount / benefit value
- Fellowships for short-term (3–6 months) and long-term (up to 2 years) specialised study in India or abroad; research grants as per UGC norms with a ₹10 lakh upper limit (up to ₹50 lakh for certain mega projects); publication support up to ₹5 lakh per publication and ₹5 lakh per journal for up to three years. Total scheme outlay ₹19 crore.
- Official guidelines PDF
- 📄 Download PDF ↗
- Official website
- https://yas.gov.in/sports/schemes ↗
Note: The scheme document is the office memorandum forwarding the revised scheme approved for 2022-23 to 2025-26; up to 40 per cent of slots in departmental programmes may be filled by State/UT nominations.
Official documents
Notices and PDFs published by the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, including earlier years. Links checked 2026-10-06.
- 📄 Scheme of HRDS amended on 31.05.2023 ↗Scheme of Human Resources Development in SportsMinistry page ↗
Eligibility
- ▸ Indian national currently based in India (PIO/OCI not eligible)
- ▸ Fellowship: not more than 55 years of age with an admission/offer letter from a UGC/AICTE-approved (or equivalent foreign) institute
- ▸ Research assistance: not more than 58 years of age with a Ph.D or Master's in a sports-related subject and a permanent/affiliated position at a UGC-recognised institution
- ▸ Government/autonomous body employees need an NOC and, for 3-6 month fellowships, an indemnity bond
Benefits
- ✓ Fellowships for short-term (3-6 months) and long-term (up to 2 years) specialised study in sports science disciplines, in India or abroad
- ✓ Financial support to attend or host seminars, workshops, clinics and conferences
- ✓ Support to invite foreign coaches, high performance directors, sports scientists and medicine experts to India
- ✓ Assistance to match officials, coaches and support personnel for qualifying examinations and courses
- ✓ Research grants as per UGC norms with ₹10 lakh upper limit (up to ₹50 lakh for certain mega projects)
- ✓ Publication support up to ₹5 lakh per publication and ₹5 lakh per journal for up to three years
- ✓ Total scheme outlay ₹19 crore
Documents required
- ▪ Copy of passport, PAN card, driving licence or Aadhaar card
- ▪ Birth certificate or secondary school certificate showing date of birth
- ▪ Copy of the institution's admission/offer letter with full fee break-up
- ▪ No Objection Certificate signed by an authorised officer of the employer
- ▪ Ph.D / Master's degree certificate (research and senior fellowship applicants)
- ▪ Indemnity bond on ₹100 non-judicial stamp paper (sponsored government employees)
Application process
Apply to the Department of Sports, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports in the prescribed format with the institute's admission/offer letter and NOC; government employees route applications through their department.
Apply via: Apply to the Department of Sports, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports in the prescribed format with the institute's admission/offer letter and NOC; government employees route applications through their department.
Frequently asked questions
What can the HRDS fellowship be used for?＋
Advanced or specialised study in sports-relevant disciplines such as biomechanics, sports nutrition, kinesiology, exercise physiology, sports psychology, GTMT, sports medicine, anti-doping, sports informatics, sports genetics, sports management and sports law. The competent authority decides a course's relevance case by case.
Do government employees need extra paperwork?＋
Yes. An NOC from the employer is required, and for sponsored fellowships of 3–6 months an indemnity bond on ₹100 non-judicial stamp paper is taken, binding the candidate not to leave the organisation for at least two years.