Lok Sabha Question No. 5822 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-30
Subject: Development of Water Sports Infrastructure
Ministry: TOURISM
Asked by: Shri Captain Brijesh Chowta

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF TOURISM

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.5822 ANSWERED ON 30.03.2026

## DEVELOPMENT OF WATER SPORTS INFRASTRUCTURE

## 5822. SHRI CAPTAIN BRIJESH CHOWTA:

Will the Minister of TOURISM be pleased to state:

- (a) the  current  status  of  water  sports  infrastructure  for  scuba  diving, diving,  surfing,  parasailing,  canoeing  and  other  water  sports  in Coastal Karnataka;
- (b) whether it is a fact that the National Institute of Water Sports in Goa is the only Government facility for water sports training in South Asia and whether the Government has taken any steps to establish similar facilities in the country and if so, the details thereof, State/UT-wise;
- (c)  whether Dakshin Kannada district is being considered for development of water sports infrastructure;
- (d) the  details  of  Khelo  India  Water  Sports  Festival  2025  at  Dal  Lake including participation statistics and sports names;
- (e) whether  111  declared  National  Waterways  are  being  explored  for water sports beyond river cruise tourism through coordination with Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways;
- (f) the details of safety standards and adventure tourism guidelines for water sports operators, enforcement mechanisms along with compliance status; and
- (g) the details of roadmap for expanding water sports infrastructure to promote adventure tourism?

## ANSWER

THE MINISTER OF TOURISM          (SHRI GAJENDRA SINGH SHEKHAWAT)

(a) to (b): The  Ministry  of  Tourism  through  it ' s  autonomous  institute 'National  Institute  of  Water  Sports  (NIWS-IITTM)'  conducts  courses related to scuba diving, diving, surfing, parasailing, canoeing and other water sports. NIWS-IITTM is the nodal Government institution for training, certification and capacity building in water sports in India.

At present, no formal proposal is with the Ministry of Tourism for development of water sports infrastructure in Coastal Karnataka. However, some States/UTs such as Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Gujarat and Odisha have approached NIWS -IITTM for establishment of satellite centres to support capacity building and safe water-based tourism.

Further, under the "Creation and Up-gradation of Sports Infrastructure" component of the Khelo India Scheme (KIS) and National Sports  Development  Funds  (NSDF),  financial  assistance  have  been provided  for  development  of  sports  infrastructure  such  as  synthetic athletic  track,  synthetic  hockey  field,  synthetic  turf  football  ground, multipurpose  hall,  swimming  pool  etc.  Projects  have  been  sanctioned across the country including 01 project of Swimming Pool in the State of Karnataka. The details of the sports infrastructure projects approved and their  sanctioned  cost,  funds  released  and  their  physical  and  financial progress, under the KIS and NSDF, across the country including in the State of Karnataka are available in public domain on the dashboards of the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports at https://mdsd.kheloindia.gov.in and at http://www.nsdf.yas.gov.in/nsdf-glance.html, respectively.

(c): At present, no formal proposal is with the Ministry of Tourism for development of water sports infrastructure at Dakshin Kannada district.

(d): First edition of the Khelo India Water Sports Festival was held from 21st August to 23rd August 2025 in Srinagar, UT of Jammu and Kashmir to promote Water Sports and to enhance the reach and popularity of Water Sports.

The  Games  were  conducted  in  2  competitive  sports  and  3  Demo Sports  with  the  participation  of  409  Athletes,  82  Support  Staff,  65 Technical Officials, 55 Sports Specific Volunteers, 2 Competition Managers etc.

The key features of the Khelo India Water Sports Festival (KIWSF) 2025 are as follows:

Sports Discipline:

· Competitive: Kayaking & Canoeing, Rowing (2 Sports)

- Demo: Water Skiing, Shikara Race & Dragon Boat (3 Sports)

Age Category: Open Age Category. Top three States in the Medal Tally:-

| State          |   Gold |   Silver |   Bronze |   Total |
|----------------|--------|----------|----------|---------|
| Madhya Pradesh |     10 |        3 |        5 |      18 |
| Odisha         |      4 |        5 |        1 |      10 |
| Kerala         |      3 |        1 |        3 |       7 |

(e): At present, no formal proposal is with the Ministry of Tourism for exploring 111 declared National Waterways for water sports. However, several National Waterways are already being utilized for water sports activities  by  respective  State  Governments.  These  include,  inter  alia: Ganga  (Uttar  Pradesh,  Uttarakhand),  Sutlej  (Himachal  Pradesh),  Indus (Ladakh), Chenab, Godavari, Kaveri, Krishna, Mahanadi, Narmada, Sabarmati, Netravati, Sharavati, Tungabhadra, Mandovi, Chapora, Ghataprabha, Ravi and canal systems in Kerala.

## (f): The details are as under:

- Safety  Standards  and  Guidelines:  NIWS -IITTM  has  developed comprehensive  safety  standards  and  SOPs  for  various  water sports  activities.  These  have  been  adopted/incorporated  by several States/UTs in their respective water sports and adventure tourism policies. Technical support has been provided to States/UTs such as Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Goa, Gujarat, Odisha and Puducherry.
- Enforcement  Mechanism:  Enforcement  of  safety  regulations rests with the respective State/UT Governments. These include Tourist Police in Goa, Tourist Safety Enforcement Team (TSET) in Andaman & Nicobar Islands, State and District-level Adventure Tourism Committees in Gujarat and Odisha.
- Compliance Status: Compliance is monitored by State/UT authorities through periodic inspections, audits and enforcement teams as per their respective guidelines.

(g): The proposals received from the State/UT Governments and other eligible  entities  are  considered  for  financial  support,  subject  to  their completeness, technical feasibility, risk assessments  and  carrying capacity  analysis  for  coastal  areas,  rivers,  reservoirs  and  lakes  and availability of funds under the Scheme.

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