India Strengthens Anti-Doping Drive with New Legislative Amendment

In a significant move to bolster India's anti-doping framework, Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya introduced the National Anti-Doping (Amendment) Bill in the Lok Sabha. The bill seeks to grant greater operational independence to the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA), aligning its operations with the guidelines of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

The amendment, which retains the National Board for Anti-Doping in Sports but removes its jurisdiction over NADA's appeals panel, comes after WADA raised objections to governmental interference in NADA's activities. The bill aims to ensure the autonomy of NADA's decisions relating to operations, investigations, and enforcement.

This legislative change arises in the wake of India leading the World Anti-Doping Agency's 2023 testing figures, with significant rises in testing and a higher positivity rate for banned substances compared to other nations. The sports ministry has pledged further aggressive measures to eliminate doping in Indian sports.

(With inputs from agencies.)