Picture Credit : @PTUshaOfficial/X
Indian Olympic Association President (IOA) and Rajya Sabha member P T Usha has urged the central government to promote production of indigenous anti-doping testing kits under the ‘Make in India’ initiative, saying that it will not only reduce cost but also increase transparency.
According to media reports, Usha raised the issue in Rajya Sabha and said that having to import testing kits causes delayed results and dependency on “external agencies”. Two Swiss companies, Berlinger and LockCon, are the major suppliers of these testing kits to India right now, according to a well-placed source.
“I want to draw the urgent attention of this house to a matter that affects the integrity of our athletes and the global image of our nation. The need to promote indigenous production of anti-doping kits under the Make in India initiative to work towards making India a dope-free sporting nation.
“…the menace of doping continues to threaten fairplay, athlete health and our country’s reputation on the world stage. At present a significant portion of high quality dope testing kits is imported, resulting in high cost, delay in testing cycles and dependency on external agencies,” she said.
India is bidding to become an Olympic host in 2036 and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has made it clear that the country will have to considerably improve its current doping record. India ranks poorly in tackling the menace and regularly features in the global top five of dope offenders.
Her statement comes a week after Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, in response to a question in the Upper House, said
