Why are Indian sports bodies under scandal and scrutiny?

Why are Indian sports bodies under scandal and scrutiny?

Subject : Polity

Section: National Organization

• All India Football Federation (AIFF) and the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) face potential ban/suspension if elections to the executive body are not done immediately. Hockey India has also come under scrutiny by the International Hockey Federation (FIH) for the delay in conducting elections.
• The Sports Code, or National Sports Development Code of India to be precise, was introduced in 2011 by the Central government, which wanted good governance practices in the management of sports at the national level without interfering in the autonomy of the national sports bodies.

NADA – The National Anti Doping Agency

• National Anti Doping Agency is mandated for Dope free sports in India. The primary objectives are to implement anti-doping rules as per WADA code, regulate dope control programme, to promote education and research and creating awareness about doping and its ill effects.
• It is the national organisation responsible for controlling an monitoring the use of dopes in the all sports in India.
• NADA deals with adoption and implementation of anti-doping rules and policies as per the rules made by the World Anti-Doping agency (WADA).
• NADA includes representatives and scientists from the Indian Olympic Association (IOA).

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)

• It is a foundation initiated by the International Olympic Committee based in Canada to promote, coordinate and monitor the fight against drugs in sports.
• The agency’s key activities include scientific research, education, development of anti-doping capacities, and monitoring of the World Anti-Doping Code, whose provisions are enforced by the UNESCO International Convention against Doping in Sport.
• Government of India is one of the Foundation Members of World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) (1999-2002).
• India is ranked third in doping cases, according to the latest World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) report released in 2021.

PROHIBITED LIST

• The Prohibited List is a mandatory International Standard as part of the World Anti-Doping Program.

Below are some terms used in this List of Prohibited Substances and Prohibited Methods.

• Prohibited In-Competition
  • Subject to a different period having been approved by WADA for a given sport, the In-Competition period shall in principle be the period commencing just before midnight(at 11:59 p.m.) on the day before a Competition in which the Athlete is scheduled to participate until the end of the Competition and the Sample collection process.
• Prohibited at all times
  • This means that the substance or method is prohibited In- and Out-of-Competition as defined in the Code.
• Specified and non-Specified
  • As per Article 4.2.2 of the World Anti-Doping Code, “for purposes of the application of Article 10, all Prohibited Substances shall be Specified Substances except as identified on the Prohibited List.
  • No Prohibited Method shall be a Specified Method unless it is specifically identified as a Specified Method on the Prohibited List”.
  • As per the comment to the article, “the Specified Substances and Methods identified in Article 4.2.2 should not in any way be considered less important or less dangerous than other doping substances or methods. Rather, they are simply substances and methods which are more likely to have been consumed or used by an Athlete for a purpose other than the enhancement of sport performance.”
• Substances of Abuse
  • Pursuant to Article 4.2.3 of the Code, Substances of Abuse are substances that are identified as such because they are frequently abused in society outside of the context of sport. The following are designated Substances of Abuse: cocaine, diamorphine(heroin), methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA/”ecstasy”), tetrahydrocannabinol(THC).