India-New Zealand Kanpur Test may see a scarce turnout

It seems that the dengue scare in the northern parts of India may potentially affect the first Test between India and New Zealand. The first Test scheduled for the 22nd  of September at the Green Park stadium in Kanpur may possibly be played in front of a scarce crowd due to the massive dengue threat.

The city has already witnessed a spurt in the dengue cases and it is estimated that close to 800 people have tested positive for it. The stats also includes close to 300 policemen and some of the security who were to be in-charge during the game, including the Additional Superintendent of Police, Mr. Jitesh Srivastava. It is said that early 100 new cases are getting reported every day.

“Around 300 police personnel are undergoing treatment for viral fever and dengue, and these include station in-charges and constables,” Kanpur Senior Superintendent of Police, Shalabh Mathur told the Hindustan Times.

“Police officials from other districts will be called to Kanpur to maintain law and order during the match. Provincial Armed Constabulary and central security forces will also be deployed,” Mr Mathur added.

It is learnt a huge pile of waste were found near the venue recently and the secretary of the association Mr Rajeev Shukla had told the authorities to clean it up.

“No fogging has been done in or around the stadium as of now,” An official from the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association(UPCA) told the Hindustan Times.

“The UPCA has already made the district administration and health department aware but nothing has been done so far,” he added.

However, the association have a backup plan, in case they do not get fans to the venue. They intend to give school children and college students a free entry into the venue to ensure that the ground doesn’t go empty and has at least a few fans, rooting for their favourite stars.

“In case, fans don’t turn up during the match, UPCA has plans to give free entry to school and college students to avoid a no-fan situation during the match,” he said.