The Bombay high court on Tuesday deferred hearing on PILs challenging the use of huge amounts of water during Indian Premier League (IPL) matches in Maharashtra as the state is reeling under acute water shortage. While adjourning the matter, the court asked the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to answer some queries, including if it could shift the IPL matches out of Pune, which is also facing a bad water shortage situation.
Another question asked by the division bench of Justice V.M. Kanade and Justice M.S. Karnik was if the BCCI would contribute to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund for drought relief and if yes, then how much. The court also asked the BCCI if it had supplied 40 lakh litres of water to stadiums per day for IPL tournaments so far, then whether it was ready to supply the same quantity to water-starved villages in and around Pune.
The judges have also asked the Royal Western India Turf Club (RWITC) to give an undertaking to the court saying that it would supply only treated sewage water for IPL matches. The court sought this undertaking after the BCCI’s counsel Rafiq Dada informed the bench that BCCI had tied up with RWITC to procure treated sewage water for IPL matches to be played in Mumbai and Pune.
He also said that everyday 7-8 tankers of treated sewage water would be supplied to the stadiums. Advocate Dada also said that use of treated sewage water should be encouraged because currently after treating it is released into the sea and goes to waste.
According to him, in this case, instead of discharging treated sewage water into the sea it is now being used in the stadiums.
The bench has asked the respondents to reply to these queries and also file an undertaking by Wednesday.
In the meantime, IPL franchise Kings XI Punjab has agreed to shift three matches outside Nagpur considering the drought situation there. The court was informed that these matches would be shifted to Mohali or elsewhere if HC asks. The high court bench was hearing a PIL filed by NGO Loksatta Movement, challenging the use of large quantities of water in stadiums despite the state being severely drought-hit.
Advocate D.H. Mehta, on behalf of the petitioners, argued before the court that in drought-hit areas there is water shortage not only for drinking, but also for sanitation and other purposes, so instead of allowing treated sewage water for IPL, the same should also be supplied to the drought-affected areas in the state.
