Safdarjung Hospital and SAI Join Hands to Boost Athlete Healthcare

Speaking at the event, Health Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava described the agreement as an important step towards supporting India's sporting ambitions.

The Sports Injury Centre (SIC) at Safdarjung Hospital and the Sports Authority of India (SAI) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen healthcare services for Indian athletes. Signed in the presence of Union Health Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava and Sports Secretary Hari Ranjan Rao, the partnership brings together one of India's leading sports medicine institutions and the country's premier sports development organisation.

The agreement is designed to provide athletes and support staff with better access to specialised medical care, covering injury prevention, diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation and sports science services. Officials said the collaboration will create a more coordinated healthcare system that helps athletes maintain peak physical condition while supporting their long-term performance. Along with clinical care, the partnership will promote joint research, medical education, training programmes and capacity building to strengthen sports medicine across the country.

Focus on research and expanding sports medicine facilities

Speaking at the event, Health Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava described the agreement as an important step towards supporting India's sporting ambitions. She said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare would extend full support to strengthen sports medicine services and develop a long-term partnership with the sports sector.

She noted that athletes are spread across the country and said the ministry would explore ways to expand sports medicine facilities while increasing postgraduate education to create a larger pool of trained specialists. The ministry will also examine opportunities to involve newer AIIMS institutions in athlete healthcare and encourage collaboration with specialised institutions such as NIMHANS to address broader medical needs beyond orthopaedic injuries. Srivastava also emphasised the importance of identifying research priorities that can improve athlete performance, especially in emerging areas of sports medicine where specialised expertise is still developing.

India-specific sports science to guide future performance

Sports Secretary Hari Ranjan Rao highlighted the need for stronger indigenous research in sports medicine and sports science. He said many existing treatment protocols and performance benchmarks are based on Western populations and may not fully reflect the physiological characteristics of Indian athletes.

He called for the development of India-specific scientific evidence, assessment methods and rehabilitation protocols that can better support injury prevention and athletic performance. Rao also proposed closer collaboration between SAI's Centres of Excellence and nearby medical colleges, allowing specialists and researchers to work directly with athletes while strengthening medical training and scientific research.

Officials from both ministries said the partnership marks an important step towards building an evidence-based sports medicine ecosystem that combines specialised healthcare, scientific innovation and institutional collaboration to support the long-term success of Indian athletes on national and international stages.