Environmentalists Request BCCI To Move India-Bangladesh T20I Out Of Delhi

Bangladesh will play India in the first T20I in Delhi on November 3 (Sunday) at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. There has been a lot of speculations over the game but BCCI has insisted to carry on with the match. The environmentalists have requested the Sourav Ganguly-led board to move the game out of the capital.

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The pollution level in Delhi is quite high and it has increased manifold after Diwali. Previously, we have witnessed Sri Lankan players wearing masks during a Test match in 2017 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium (earlier known as Feroz Shah Kotla) in Delhi.

The decreasing air quality raised doubts over the future of the 1st T20I. The environmentalists have cited that the toxic air in the capital can damage the health of the Indian cricketers in the long run. One of the activists cited that pollution levels will be between severe and hazardous.

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“On the 3rd of November India is scheduled to play against Bangladesh in a T20 match at Feroz Shah Kotla at a time when pollution levels are expected to be between severe to hazardous,” activists Jyoti Pande and Ravina Raj Kohli wrote in the open letter.

“In the light of extreme pollution in Delhi, we would like to request you to consider shifting the venue for the first T20 outside of Delhi. Making our cricketers play a physically demanding sport for 3-4 hours in Delhi’s toxic air will end up doing more damage to our cricket team’s health in the long run,” they wrote.

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However, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is hopeful that pollution will not affect the cricketers during the first match of the series. BCCI has also confirmed that they have seeked permission from Delhi Pollution Control Committee before finalising on the schedule.

India will play three T20Is against Bangladesh starting from November 3 followed by two Test matches in Indore and Kolkata.