New Delhi, Feb. 2 -- India's sports goods manufacturing sector received a boost in the union budget presented on Sunday with Rs.500 crore set aside for the promotion of the industry. "India has the potential to emerge as a global hub for high quality, affordable sports goods. I propose a dedicated initiative for sports goods that will promote manufacturing, research and innovation in equipment design as well as material sciences," union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said. The finance minister also announced the launch of a Khelo India Mission with focus on integrated talent development pathways through training centres at foundational, intermediate and elite level. In the crucial year of Asian Games and the Commonwealth Games, the overall budget allocation for sports ministry has been set at Rs.4,479.88 crore - an increase of Rs.1,133.34 crore over the revised 2025-26 allocation. However, there has been a cut in the allocation for the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA), from Rs.24.30 crore to Rs.20.30 crore, and for the National Dope Testing Laboratory (NDTL), from Rs.28.55 crore to Rs.23 crore. This comes at a time when India is grappling with the doping menace. According to the latest World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) report, India topped the global doping charts with 260 Adverse Analytical Findings (AAF) in 2024....