BAI's 9.75 Crore Plan To Boost Grassroots, Support Coaches & Reward Medallists

Last Updated:June 02, 2025, 12:49 IST

The Badminton Association of India announced a plan to boost the sport, including monthly retainers for ex-coaches, doubling domestic prizes, and rewarding medalists.

Badminton representative (Image: X)

The Badminton Association of India (BAI) has announced an INR 9.75 crore annual investment plan to boost the sport’s growth in the country. This plan includes offering monthly retainers to former international coaches, doubling prize money for domestic tournaments, and rewarding international medal-winning performances.

The decision was made during BAI’s Annual General Meeting held in the national capital on Saturday.

To focus on long-term talent development and international success, the federation has allocated INR 73 lakh for monthly retainers to Olympians and former internationals who now train players at national camps. Additionally, INR 2.22 crore has been set aside as direct rewards for Indian shuttlers who win medals at major global events.

Out of the INR 9.75 crore annual expenditure for grassroots initiatives and assisting state associations in conducting domestic tournaments, INR 3.8 crore has been dedicated to the total prize pool and grant allocation for national tournaments.

The revised structure increases annual grants to state associations from INR 7.5 lakh to INR 10 lakh. BAI will also provide additional support for organising national ranking tournaments across various age groups: INR 3 lakh for U-15 and U-17 events, INR 2 lakh for Senior and U-19 events, and INR 1.5 lakh for U-13 events.

BAI president Himanta Biswa Sarma stated that given the size of the country, one National Centre of Excellence (NCE) was insufficient. Thus, increased grants to state associations will help them enhance their existing programmes.

To improve domestic competition, the prize money for national ranking tournaments has been doubled. Senior national ranking events will now offer INR 10 lakh in prize money, U-19 events will offer INR 8 lakh, U-15 and U-17 events will offer INR 12 lakh, and U-13 events will offer INR 6 lakh.

The total allocation for all National Championships has increased from INR 2.13 crore to INR 3.2 crore, with the Senior Nationals alone seeing an increase from INR 75 lakh to INR 1 crore.

BAI has also allocated INR 1 lakh per month to Olympians and INR 50,000 per month to coaches who have represented the official Indian team in international events and are currently coaching at National Camps held across three locations.

To reward international excellence, a cash prize of INR 20 lakh will be given to a World Championship gold medallist, INR 10 lakh for a BWF Super 1000 title, and INR 50 lakh for a team gold at the senior level. Junior team golds will attract INR 30 lakh, while individual gold medallists at junior World and Asian Championships will receive INR 15 lakh and INR 10 lakh, respectively.

Sarma emphasised that addressing the needs of up-and-coming players and providing better financial incentives is crucial for the sport’s development and for charting a successful future path.

Ritayan Basu

Ritayan Basu, Senior Sub-Editor, Sports at News18.com. Has been covering domestic and and international football for nearly a decade. Has played and covered badminton. Ocassionally writes on cricket, having cov...Read More

Ritayan Basu, Senior Sub-Editor, Sports at News18.com. Has been covering domestic and and international football for nearly a decade. Has played and covered badminton. Ocassionally writes on cricket, having cov...

Read More

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