Metro will jam way for 15k cricket fans

Metro will jam way for 15k cricket fans
Entry, Exit To East Stands of Stadium To Be Hit
TEAM TOI

Bangalore: Here is a shocker for cricket lovers in the city. Bangalore Metro may seriously hamper access to a significant portion of the historical Chinnaswamy stadium (north-eastern side on Cubbon Road) which seats nearly 15,000 spectators.
The train after turning from Anil Kumble Circle will pass through the police headquarters, skirt through a portion of the stadium near Karnataka Land Army Corporation before going underground near the Minsk square.
This was disclosed at an interactive session with Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar, KSCA president, and Brijesh Patel, KSCA secretary, held at the TOI office on Monday.
Patel said: “They first said the train will not touch the stadium and will go underground. Now, they say they will take over the land which will affect the entry into the stadium. It will cause inconvenience to spectators. We will be forced to raise the height of the ramp. We told them to go underground a few feet before the diversion to Cubbon Road so that the stadium need not be disturbed. But they do not want to listen to us. For us it means 15,000 seats in the stadium will get isolated.’’
Patel was quick to clarify: “We are not against the Metro project. But there can be realignment. The stadium even hosted the World Cup. It has to be a win-win situation.” He clarified that no part of the stadium will need to be demolished. But the realignment is going to make entry to and exit from the Eastern and Northern stands difficult, forcing the KSCA to build a ramp above the Metro. Even if that is possible, the catering areas for the 15,000-odd spectators who will occupy those stands will be almost impossible to create, he said.
BMRCL SPEAK
“We have held several meetings with them and they are
completely in the know of things. This project was approved in 2005 and they know about it. We have to look at entire Bangalore and its 50 lakh people who will use the train,’’ B L Y Chavan, BMRCL spokesperson, told TOI. He said 1,000 engineers worked on the technicalities of the Rs 8,000-crore project and thoroughly studied all the properties that will get affected by the project. I know the cricket stadium is important.’’
WHAT NEXT?
“We will apprise CM B S Yeddyurappa about the issue. We will also approach Karnataka ministers at the Centre — S M Krishna, Mallikarjuna M Kharge and M Veerappa Moily — to fight our cause,’’ Wadiyar said. WADIYAR, PATEL TO BOWL PEOPLE OVER WITH KPL


“KPL is going to be a serious tournament and will be on the KSCA agenda for sometime to come. Initially we had planned it for a period of five years. Hopefully it will go on for another five and we will have a look on how it works.”
— Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar



“What is wrong with franchisee ownership? Last year, the KSCA conducted a T20 tournament and there was no crowd. We need to have a broader look at it. KPL is not only helpful to cricketers but also to coaches, trainers and support staff. There will be lot of activities in the districts as well.”
— Brijesh Patel



Bangalore Metro will run through the periphery of the Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore.