The secretary of the BCCI has said today that the result of the IPL moving out of Maharashtra would be a net loss of about 100 crore rupees to the state. Ankur Thakur spoke to the reporters citing a study by the BCCI following last year’s IPL season.
The Chief Minister had earlier responded to criticism that the IPL games in Maharashtra would cause a water crisis due to excessive usage in pitch maintenance, saying that he did not have any issue with the tournament moving out of the state.
The secretary of the BCCI suggested that the profits from the resulting IPL matches be used to provide water relief to take care of the drought problem affecting the general population.
The state in question will this year be holding a total of eighteen matches in this year, with matches being held at Nagpur, Pune, and Mumbai. Thakur reiterated his concern for the crisis unfolding in the state and has already directed the franchises to come up with possible solutions to the problem.
A hearing has been set on April 12 at the Bombay High Court to discuss the problem. The court had previously been petitioned by an NGO to review the case and order the matches to be shifted to other locations. An amount of approximately Sixty lakh litres of water are projected to be used up in the maintenance of the pitches, adding stress to the already scarce supplies of water.