IPL franchise the Kings XI Punjab have now picked Dharmsala as their alternate home venue after all the matches have been moved out of Nagpur as per the order of the Bombay High Court.
"We are happy to announce that Kings XI Punjab will be playing our three home games in Dharamsala. We are grateful and thankful to the HPCA for their support in helping us make this transition seamless at such short notice," the franchise said in a statement.
Owing to the severe water crisis in the drought-hit state of Maharashtra, thirteen IPL matches including the final that are to be played next month have been shifted out of the state. No matches will be held in Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur after the 1st of May.
The Mumbai Indians have picked Jaipur and the Rising Pune Supergiants have opted for Visakhapatnam as their alternate home venues. Bangalore will now host the all-important final.
Also Read: Bombay High Court allows match in Pune on 1 May
The BCCI had done all it could to prevent the shifting of the matches but the Court had remained unmoved saying that the decision was necessary on humanitarian grounds.
IPL Chairman Rajeev Shukla had earlier said: "Organising the IPL is a gigantic work. It's not easy. All preparations had been done, completed," Shukla said.
"Now shifting the matches will be a problem. So far, we have not got the written order, after we get that, we will study the order and work out an alternative plan. We always respect the court. We need to talk to other franchises. We will have to work it out.
"The key problem is water for farmers, which we are trying to find a solution to. We were willing to give water, contribute to the CM's fund. Now shifting matches will be a problem.
If matches are to be shifted, where will they be moved, how will they be moved, all these issues are involved. And this comes after nobody raised an issue about the 24 World T20 matches that were held recently."
The BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur had also expressed his displeasure at the decision and said, "We are not using drinking water, we have said that we will use treated sewage water only. How many swimming pools of five-star hotels have been shut?
"Have people stopped watering their lawns? There is an attempt to create negativity on every issue these days. IPL was to use 0.00038% of water so that shows the requirement was not much."
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