Cabinet Secretary to head Sports Ministry''s search-cum-selection panel for NSB constitution

The Sports Ministry's search-cum-selection committee to recommend names for the all-powerful National Sports Board (NSB) will be a five-member panel headed by the Cabinet Secretary.

The committee will also include Sports Secretary, a position occupied by IAS officer Hari Ranjan Rao, an experienced name from sports administration and two national sports awards winners.

Senior IAS officer T V Somanathan is the incumbent cabinet secretary.

''The Union Government has notified the National Sports Board (Search-cum Selection Committee) Rules, 2026 under the National Sports Governance Act, 2025,'' stated the sports ministry.

''The notification empowers the government to constitute a Search-cum-Selection Committee chaired by the Cabinet Secretary and comprising the Secretary (Sports), one person with experience in sports administration, and two recipients of national sports awards,'' it added.

While Rao and Somanathan are confirmed to be on the panel due to their current positions, the other three members would be appointed soon by the ministry after Thursday's notification.

The committee will recommend a panel of names for the positions of Chairperson and two Members of the National Sports Board, from among ''persons of ability, integrity and standing, having knowledge or practical experience in the field of public administration, sports governance, sports law and other related fields.'' The National Sports Board will act as the central authority responsible for granting board recognition to federations and ensuring compliance with governance, financial and ethical standards set by the National Sports Governance Act.

The Act was notified on August 18 last year and has been described as the single biggest sporting reform in the country by Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya.

After elections under the provisions of the Act, all sports bodies will be required to have Executive Committees of no more than 15 members with at least two Sportspersons of Merit (SOMs) in them.

The provisions that were notified as enforced on January 1 relate to the establishment and governance framework of National Sports Bodies, including the National Olympic Committee, National Paralympic Committee, National Sports Federations (NSFs) and Regional Sports Federations.