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IPL to enhance security spending

G. Viswanath

Season II officially launched

— Photo: Shashi Ashiwal

Lalit Modi elaborated on various aspects of the second season of the IPL during the launch in Mumbai on Tuesday.

MUMBAI: The DLF-IPL Season II was officially launched here on Tuesday with a modified logo assigning better visibility to the acronym IPL. The D.Y. Patil Sports Academy ground at Navi Mumbai was named as the venue for the multi-million dollar opening extravaganza and closing ceremony.

It was also announced that Brabourne Stadium is likely to host all the seven home matches of the Reliance Industries-owned Mumbai Indians, and a few games would be held at Ahmedabad and Visakhapatnam too.

It was made known that finishing touches were being given to the deal on having Dharamsala in Himachal Pradesh as the third additional venue this season, and that the IPL would spend 10 times more on security infrastructure compared to the first season.

Significant aspect

After a meeting with the students of the Columbia Business School that is doing a case study on the IPL, Lalit Modi, Chairman and Commissioner of the Twenty20 league, touched upon the significant aspect of the 45-day competition involving 59 matches, namely the clearance from the State governments and a structured security policy that would be put in place with the help of the local governments and Commissioner of Police of each city that would be hosting the matches.

“As of now, 90 per cent of the revised schedule has been approved by the State governments. Three governments have given in writing, confirming the dates. Rajasthan was the first to do so on Saturday. Maharashtra, too, has done it.

“We are expecting the other five states to write back to us in a day or so. One State wanted one date to be changed and we did it by replacing that match with another in another city. In principle, we have clearances from all the States. The Home Ministry has been kept abreast of the developments directly by the State governments,” said Modi.

Elaborating the process of revising the schedule, Modi said that the document was first sent to the stakeholders which included the State governments.

“We asked them the dates on which they did not want the matches to be held in their cities and this process has been completed. Secondly, we came out with the revised schedule and this too has been completed. The new schedule was then sent to the State governments for approval.”

About the security aspect, Modi said: “It’s important for the players, officials and fans. Last year, South African company Nicholls & Steyn Associates was hired to look after player security. Based on recent incidents, all security measures have been stepped up, and Nicholls & Steyn will closely work with all State associations.

“Last year, the player security was the responsibility of the team owners and some of them had contracted Nicholls & Steyn as well as their own security forces. This year, we have gone from venue to venue in order to have a central security system in place.

Cumbersome process

“We will coordinate with the teams, but the IPL would handle it centrally in all aspects right from the arrival and departure of players at the airports, hotels and during transportation. It’s a very cumbersome template. We did this exercise for the Chennai Test after the Mumbai terror attacks.

“We had put together a rigorous plan which was shared with the security forces in Chennai, the State government, the International Cricket Council (ICC) and the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB). We will take that as a base template and apply it to every city.

“There will be a constant movement of the players. We require a large amount of manpower for security. That’s the reason the security budget has gone up by 10 times this year. We are leaving no stone unturned in this regard. We would be working closely with the State governments and Police Commissioners of the cities. A similar exercise would be done for stadium security with the help of the State governments.”

Best and biggest

With regard to IMG’s report on security, Modi said it was important to identify the shortcomings of the first season and overcome them this time.

“We are exactly one month away from the first game of Season II. It’s the best and biggest Twenty20 tournament in the world, involving more than 100 players.

“The IPL has become the biggest entertainment property in South Asia. Last year, the league was launched without the club culture, or fan following for club cricket. It’s a dynamic property,” Modi added.

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