Khel Pratibha Puraskar

What is Khel Pratibha Puraskar?

Khel Pratibha Puraskar; literally the sports talent award: is a cash award scheme of the Sports Authority of Gujarat, the implementing body of the Sports, Youth and Cultural Activities Department, Government of Gujarat. The Authority's own description is that the scheme was implemented to honour Gujarat state athletes who win at national and international levels.

Khel Pratibha Puraskar sits alongside the Authority's other programmes and is the one aimed squarely at results already achieved. The Authority also runs the Swami Vivekananda Centre of Excellence for developing elite athletes, the Shaktidoot scheme for athletes in School Games Federation of India and Olympic disciplines, the InSchool scheme, District Level Sports Schools, a scheme for awards to women players, a state mountaineering award, a pension scheme for retired sportspersons, financial support for international competition, and the Khel Mahakumbh mass participation event. Where those schemes fund training and opportunity, Khel Pratibha Puraskar pays out on the medal.

Key features

• Cash award to Gujarat sportspersons for winning at national and international competitions.
• Two streams: the general Khel Pratibha Puraskar and the Divyang Khel Pratibha Puraskar for athletes with disabilities.
• Operated by the Sports Authority of Gujarat from Gandhinagar.
• Applications are made online through the Authority's player registration and login system.

Which government resolutions govern the scheme?

Khel Pratibha Puraskar has been revised several times, and knowing which resolution applies matters when you are checking an amount.

• A cash prize circular dated 29 October 2014 (GR number SAG/Sport/Khe.Pra.Pu/14-15) sets out the cash prize structure and is published as a downloadable PDF on the Authority's government resolution page.
• A resolution of 14 October 2014 deals with awards to athletes winning at national and international level.
• The Divyang Khel Pratibha Puraskar stream runs under a resolution dated 28 March 2016.
• A revised Khel Pratibha Puraskar scheme resolution dated 5 March 2025 (GR number SYCAD/MGS/e-file/19/2023/0722/B) appears on the Authority's resolution listing as the most recent instrument governing the scheme.

The Sports Authority of Gujarat does not restate the cash amounts in plain text on its scheme page; the figures live inside the circular and the resolutions. Athletes should read the current circular or ask the Authority directly rather than rely on figures circulating on unofficial scheme aggregators, which often quote superseded rates.

Who is eligible for Khel Pratibha Puraskar?

A sportsperson qualifies if:

• The athlete is a sportsperson of Gujarat and represented the state or the country in the competition concerned.
• The athlete won at a recognised national or international competition, the scheme is explicitly for winners, as the Authority's online application page puts it, athletes who become winners at national and international level.
• The discipline is covered by a recognised association. The Authority's scheme page lists recognised associations across athletics, football, hockey, kabaddi, badminton, wrestling and many other disciplines at national and state level.
• The result can be evidenced by a medal or merit certificate issued by the organising federation.

For the Divyang stream, the athlete must additionally hold a disability certificate and compete in the events designated under the 28 March 2016 resolution.

A sportsperson is not eligible and cannot apply if:

• The athlete did not win — participation alone does not attract the award. Support for taking part in international competition is a different Sports Authority of Gujarat scheme.
• The athlete did not represent Gujarat.
• The competition or the association is not recognised by the Authority for the discipline.
• The athlete cannot produce a certificate from the organising federation and a confirmation from the recognised state association.
• The claim relates to an event outside the period covered by the current scheme resolution.

What documents are required?

How to apply for Khel Pratibha Puraskar

1. Open the Khel Pratibha Puraskar page on the Sports Authority of Gujarat portal at sportsauthority.gujarat.gov.in, under Schemes.
2. Complete player registration if you are applying for the first time. The Authority runs separate registration routes for players, schools, coaches and associations; athletes use player registration.
3. Log in if you have registered before, using the credentials created earlier.
4. Read the user guide that the Authority publishes as a PDF on the same page. It walks through the online form screen by screen.
5. Fill in the application with your event, competition level, date, position and discipline, and choose the general or the Divyang stream as applicable.
6. Upload the certificates, the medal or merit certificate, the state association's confirmation, domicile proof, Aadhaar, photograph and bank passbook, plus the disability certificate for the Divyang stream.
7. Submit and keep the acknowledgement, then follow up with your state association and with the Sports Authority of Gujarat.

The Authority also publishes downloadable application forms for both the general and the Divyang streams, the general form and a separate form for athletes with disabilities, for athletes who need the paper version to prepare their file before filing online.

How do you check your application status?

1. Log in to the Sports Authority of Gujarat portal with your player registration credentials and open your application.
2. Contact your recognised state sports association, which certifies results and is usually the first to hear of a query on a file.
3. Call the Sports Authority of Gujarat on 9714097760, or the Director General's office on 079-23263650.
4. Watch your bank account, since the award is credited directly once approved.

Why do Khel Pratibha Puraskar claims fail?

• No association certification. An athlete's own medal certificate is not enough if the recognised state association has not confirmed the result and the representation.
• Unrecognised event. Open tournaments and privately organised meets do not count as national or international competitions for this purpose.
• Wrong stream. Applying under the general scheme when the Divyang resolution applies, or the reverse, sends the file back.
• Incomplete online registration. The player registration must be complete before the award application can be submitted.
• Bank details in another person's name. The award is paid to the athlete.

Where do you get help?

• Sports Authority of Gujarat: 9714097760.
• Director General: 079-23263650, dg-sag@gujarat.gov.in.
• Secretary: 079-23263651, sec-sag@gujarat.gov.in.
• Office address: Administrative Building, Sector 13-B, near Kh-3 Circle, Vavol railway crossing, Gandhinagar 382016.
• Sports, Youth and Cultural Activities Department, Government of Gujarat, at sycd.gujarat.gov.in, which also hosts a Khel Pratibha Puraskar page with the application forms.

Applying is free. The Sports Authority of Gujarat takes applications through its own portal, and no agent is needed or authorised to secure the award.

A note on award amounts

Award figures for Khel Pratibha Puraskar are widely quoted online, but the Sports Authority of Gujarat does not restate them as text on the scheme page. The authoritative sources are the cash prize circular of 29 October 2014 and the revised scheme resolution of 5 March 2025, both published on the Authority's government resolution page as scanned documents. Before making any financial plan around this award, read the current resolution or confirm the rate for your medal and competition level with the Authority on 9714097760. Amounts that applied to an earlier resolution may no longer be in force.