Government: Strategies, Policies, Investment D
Definition:
Demonstrated leadership, investments, and evidence of implementation of physical activity strategies targeting children and youth.
Current evidence indicates a dearth of implementation of government policies, strategies and investments, and hence a grade of D has been assigned.
Government strategies, policies and investments are instrumental in enabling access and minimizing active living inequities across populations. The government of India has issued several broad strategy and policy documents outlining the importance of physical activity, as well as physical activity guidelines. However, there is no clear indication of these strategies being implemented.
The majority of government-led strategies are focused on competitive sport and the development
of elite national and international athletes. There is no readily available evidence of strategies and investments that are being directed towards children and youth, with the exception of the Total Physical Fitness Program being administered by the state government of Kerala. As indicated in the Community and Built Environment section, active living urban planning policies to improve walkability are also lacking. In terms of school strategies and investments, a policy is in place to mandate compulsory physical activity in schools regulated by the Central Board of Secondary Education, an autonomous organization under the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India. However, again, there is lack of evidence of actual implementation of these school-based policies.6
Overall, evidence indicates a dearth of strategies or investments to facilitate physical activity among children and youth, hence a grade of D was assigned.
Government policies, strategies and investments play a critical role of setting a multi-jurisdictional (i.e., national, state, municipal) agenda that drives policies and programs at different levels of implementation, such as schools, built environment and urban design, and family, peers and educators (e.g. through awareness and education campaigns). Government also has a role to play in resource allocation towards active living research to address the lack of evidence, and towards evidence-based active living interventions to facilitate physical activity and discourage sedentary behaviour. More importantly, as India’s youth will make up a major proportion of the world’s workforce, it is time for India to step up for its children’s physical activity to sustain a healthy and productive workforce that makes significant contributions to the global economy.