Bengaluru, Jan 21 (PTI) Karnataka State Cricket Association president Venkatesh Prasad on Wednesday termed the conditional green signal from state government to hold matches as a token appreciation of the corrective measures set in motion at the Chinnaswamy Stadium since last month.
Following the tragic stampede on June 4, top-flight cricket has stayed away from the stadium but Prasad insisted that the enhancement works have been progressing in the right direction.
“There is some more work. So, this might take probably, you know, 15th of February or something like that to get completed. This has to happen in a phased manner, which even they (state officials) know, and they have agreed to it,” Prasad said during a select media interaction here.
Prasad then gave a pen picture of the security enhancement steps being done at the venue.
“We have to make changes in terms of widening of the gates, creating holding areas and facilitating the entry of fire engines inside the ground. So, widening of a few stands were necessary.
“For that, we needed to widen the gates by six metres, which we have done by breaking a corner of some walls around the stands. We are expecting them to be fully ready by February 6,” Prasad said.
One of the most important suggestions in the government-appointed Justice (retd) D’Cunha Commission was the improvement of fire safety protocols, and Prasad said the association has gone a long way in that direction.
“As far as the fire safety is concerned, almost everything is done. There are a couple of more things to be done, which will take some time. They have also asked for 50,000 litres underground capacity. But they are okay with having an overhead tank as well.
“So that is in place and 30,000 litres is already done. So, we need to get 20,000 litres of water to it. That provision has to be done. From the BESCOM (state-run electricity supplier) part, everything is clear,” he added.
Santosh Menon, the KSCA secretary, said adequate measures are being adopted to ensure the security of children and women.
“Importantly, in the last 50 years of matches being hosted at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, such a thing (stampede) has never happened during a match. This was a very unprecedented incident, and we are trying to make everything simpler, easier for the crowd to come in. The Commission suggested that we have separate queue for children and women, which is being adhered to.
“We were also told to have easier access methods like ramps rather than steps, so that is being adhered to. Though those issues never happened during a match, we are trying to mitigate them so that even the smallest of negligence on part of any agency should not affect the safety and security of the spectators,” Menon said.
Prasad further stated that the new committee has burned the midnight oil in the last month and a half to bring cricket back to the venue.
“We have given a whole booklet in terms of the drawings, 3D drawings (of development works at the stadium) to the government. We have given them the timelines and everything. And as I said, once they were convinced about it, they issued us the conditional permission to host IPL and international matches,” he added.
The former India pacer then detailed the process behind getting the official sanction to stage matches at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.
“Along with my team, I undertook sustained and continuous outreach and engagement to bring cricket back to the Chinnaswamy. More importantly, to rebuild trust with the state government and all key stakeholders through dialogue and personal interaction.
“I would like to place on record my sincere gratitude to the government of Karnataka, Chief Minister Siddharamaiahji, Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumarji, and most importantly, Home Minister Dr. G. Parameswarji, with whom we met many times and had detailed and constructive discussions. We are also grateful to PWD Minister, Satish Jarkiholiji and Maheshwar Raoji, Chairman of the Expert Committee, for their support and guidance,” he added.
Prasad also said the association will soon announce a state cricket calendar for the 2026-27 season including age-group and club events.
“We have a CAC consisting of Anil Kumble, Javagal Srinath and Sunil Joshi along with the others. So, they have all met. We have had various discussions on how to take cricket forward in the state of Karnataka. So, we have decided that we will start a fresh season from April and not fall back on the season that is incomplete.
“So, we have decided to cease all cricketing activities pertaining to last season for the time being, including the academy and tournaments and we start afresh from April. What needs to be done to have a great season next year, the back-end work has already begun,” he said.
KSCA spokesperson Vinay Mruthyunjaya said efforts are being taken to completely digitise the ticketing for IPL and international matches at the venue so that the rush at on-site counters can be avoided. PTI UNG ATK
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