New Delhi, 22 October 2026: The Sports Science Division (erstwhile NCSSR) of the Sports Authority of India (SAI), under the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, has invited applications from eligible Indian citizens for temporary project positions. The posts are under the HRDS-funded research project “Role of Yoga Protocol on Faster Recovery and Performance Boosting in Elite Senior Hockey Athletes.”
Vacancies and Remuneration
| Position | Vacancies | Remuneration (consolidated) |
|---|---|---|
| Research Associate | 1 | ₹40,000 per month |
| Research Assistant (Yoga) | 1 | ₹40,000 per month |
| Yoga Trainer | 2 | ₹30,000 per month each |
Eligibility
Research Associate
- Essential: Master’s degree in Sports Science, Physiotherapy, Psychology, Yoga or an allied discipline from a recognised university or institution.
- Desirable: Experience in yoga-based intervention studies, athlete testing, data collection, SPSS/statistics, clinical studies or research project documentation.
Research Assistant (Yoga)
- Essential: Master’s degree in Yoga, or a Master’s degree in any relevant discipline with a recognised yoga certification (YCB Level 2 or PG Diploma in Yoga) from a recognised university or institution.
- Desirable: The same experience areas as for Research Associate.
Yoga Trainer
- Essential: Diploma course in Yoga from a recognised institution, university or the Yoga Certification Board.
- Desirable: Experience training athletes, teams or sportspersons in yoga.
Common conditions
- Only qualifications from a recognised university, institution or board will be considered.
- The essential qualification must be held on or before the closing date.
- Documentary proof is required for any claimed equivalence.
- Preference may be given to relevant experience gained after the essential qualification.
- The upper age limit is 35 years for all posts, reckoned on the closing date. Age relaxation applies as per Government of India norms.
- Applicants must be Indian citizens.
Roles and Responsibilities
- Research Associate: Assist the Principal Investigator in running the project. Handle data collection, athlete assessment, field coordination, statistical analysis, data management, documentation and report preparation. Coordinate with athletes, coaches, SAI centres and officials, and maintain project records.
- Research Assistant (Yoga): Support implementation of the approved yoga intervention protocol. Maintain attendance, adherence and progress records. Assist with recovery monitoring, athlete assessment and performance testing, and support data management and reporting.
- Yoga Trainer: Conduct supervised yoga sessions for elite hockey athletes as per the approved protocol. Demonstrate and supervise asana, pranayama, relaxation, mindfulness and recovery modules. Ensure session discipline, safety and compliance, and maintain attendance and training logs.
All roles may include other project-related duties assigned by the Principal Investigator or Competent Authority.
Tenure and Place of Work
The engagement is purely contractual for 6 months and ends with the project. It confers no right to regular appointment or absorption in SAI or any other organisation. The place of work is preferably SAI Bengaluru and SAI Bhopal, or a National Camp, Hockey Training Centre, other SAI centre or project site as decided by the Competent Authority or Principal Investigator.
How to Apply
- Fill in the prescribed Application Form (Annexure-I).
- Email it with self-attested copies of all relevant documents to ncssr.sai@gov.in.
- Put this in the subject line: “Application for the post of ______ under HRDS Research Project – Yoga & Hockey.”
- Apply within 20 days of the advertisement’s publication. Counting from 22 October 2026, this falls around 11 November 2026. Candidates should confirm the exact date on the SAI website.
Applications sent to any other email address or by any other mode may not be considered.
Documents to enclose (in this order):
- Duly filled Application Form (Annexure-I)
- Matriculation/Secondary certificate or other date-of-birth proof
- Marksheets and degree/diploma/certificate of the essential qualification
- Relevant yoga certification, where applicable
- Experience certificate(s), if any
- Valid ID proof
- Recent passport-size colour photograph
- Any other document supporting the desirable qualification or experience
Experience certificates must state the organisation, designation, nature of work, duration and issuing authority. A single recent salary slip or offer letter alone will not be accepted as proof of experience.
Selection Process
Applications will be screened against the essential qualifications, relevant experience and project requirements. Only shortlisted candidates will be called for an interview and/or skill test or practical demonstration, in online or physical mode. A practical demonstration may be included for the Yoga Trainer and Research Assistant (Yoga) posts. Meeting the minimum criteria does not guarantee a call. Selected candidates must produce original documents before joining.
Key Terms and Conditions
- No application or interview fee is charged.
- Either party may end the contract with 30 days’ notice or one month’s remuneration in lieu. SAI may terminate with immediate effect in cases of misconduct, negligence or unauthorised absence.
- The engagement is full-time, and no other assignment may be taken up during the contract.
- Selected candidates may be required to work split duties, beyond normal hours or on holidays, without additional remuneration.
- TA/DA for official tours may be allowed with prior approval.
- Project data is confidential, and publication requires approval. Candidates must comply with the Official Secrets Act, 1923 and the CCS (Conduct) Rules, 1964, to the extent applicable.
- Candidature remains provisional at every stage. Incomplete, unsupported or late applications may be rejected.
- SAI’s decisions on eligibility, shortlisting and selection are final, and canvassing in any form leads to disqualification.
- SAI may modify, cancel or withdraw the recruitment at any stage. Disputes fall under the Delhi/New Delhi courts.
Candidates should regularly check their registered email and the official SAI website, http://sportsauthorityofindia.nic.in, for updates.
The advertisement is signed by Brig. (Dr.) Bibhu Kalyan Nayak, Executive Director cum Head, Sports Science Division, SAI, and Vikas Pachouri, Principal Investigator of the project.
Written and verified by
Sandeep Khati
Founder and Editor, India Job Alerts
B.Tech in Computer Science from Jalpaiguri Government Engineering College (2010). Former Systems Engineer at TCS and in digital publishing since 2011. He started India Job Alerts in April 2025 to publish verified government and PSU job notifications for West Bengal, Sikkim and the rest of India. Every post is checked against the official notification before it goes live. Also writes about the Darjeeling hills at SearchDarjeeling.