Red flag for Indian athletics: India placed in highest-risk doping bracket
The World Athletics’ Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) has officially moved India into Category A, the highest-risk bracket for doping in international athletics. The decision, effective as of April 20, 2026, follows what the AIU describes as a consistently extremely high risk level and a domestic anti-doping programme that has failed to keep pace with the scale of the problem.
This re-categorisation places India alongside a select few nations under the most rigorous surveillance of the World Athletics’ Anti-Doping Rules.
The AIU’s decision comes at a delicate time for India’s global sporting ambitions. The country was officially awarded the hosting rights for the 2030 Centenary Commonwealth Games in Ahmedabad late last year and remains a primary contender in the bidding process for the 2036 Olympic Games.
THE NUMBERS BEHIND THE RED FLAG
The AIU’s decision is backed by a disturbing trend in Anti-Doping Rule Violations (ADRVs) recorded over the last four years. According to the WADA-affiliated AIU release, India has consistently ranked at the very top of the global list for violations:
- 2022: 48 ADRVs (Ranked 2nd globally)
- 2023: 63 ADRVs (Ranked 2nd globally)
- 2024: 71 ADRVs (Ranked 1st globally)
- 2025: 30 ADRVs to date (Ranked 1st globally)
The AIU noted that while the 2025 numbers currently sit at 30, there is typically a substantial time lag in reporting final figures, suggesting the actual number for the previous year could be significantly higher.
STRINGENT NEW OBLIGATIONS
By being moved to ‘Category A’, the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) is now bound by more punishing oversight. Rule 15 of the World Athletics Anti-Doping Rules dictates that federations held accountable for high-risk profiles must meet “minimum testing requirements” for their national team athletes to remain eligible for major championships.
AIU Chair David Howman was pointed in his assessment of the Indian situation: “The doping situation in India has been high-risk for a long time and, unfortunately, the quality of the domestic anti-doping programme is simply not proportionate to the doping risk. While the AFI has advocated for anti-doping reforms within India, not enough has changed.”
Howman further clarified that the AIU will now take a hands-on approach: “The AIU will now work with the AFI to achieve reforms to safeguard the integrity of the sport of athletics, as we have done with other ‘Category A’ Member Federations.”
The re-categorisation follows a recent visit to India by WADA President Witold Banka, who sounded the alarm over how easily performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) are accessed across the country. Banka took the unusual step of meeting with senior officials of Indian police department to address the “serious problem” of supply chains, according to Reuters.
AFI spokesperson Adille Sumariwalla, also World Athletics’ vice-president, acknowledged the gravity of the situation but maintained that the high numbers are partly a result of increased vigilance.
“AFI has got a strong plan and we are all for criminalising doping in this country,” Sumariwalla told the news agency.
“There’s nothing wrong in more scrutiny. More athletes are getting caught in India because more tests are being conducted.
“We are fighting it tooth and nail. The crooks and criminals doing it should be stopped by police. We are not police, our job is to create a policy and the government is helping.”
Sumariwalla also emphasised that the AFI is all for criminalising doping in this country to deter the crooks facilitating the use of banned substances.
– Ends
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