7 unvaccinated India U-19 players were denied entry into Caribbean and told to "go back" during WC
New Delhi, Feb 22: The COVID-19 outbreak in its camp was not the only off-field challenge the Indian team overcame on its way to the U-19 World Cup triumph.
India's problems began on arrival in the Caribbean islands, with as many as seven unvaccinated members of the side detained at the airport for more than 24 hours, requiring the government to step in and resolve the issue.
This was after a long flight from Dubai to Port-of-Spain via Amsterdam.
Left-arm pacer Ravi Kumar, who played a huge role in the team's unprecedented fifth World Cup triumph, and opener Angkrish Raghuvanshi were among the players who were told to "go back to India" as they were not jabbed.
Team manager Lobzang G. Tenzing, who came to their rescue with the help of the ICC and colleagues in the BCCI, narrated the "harrowing experience" of the players. The India and Trinidad government, too, had to step in to resolve the situation.
"After we landed at Port-of-Spain, we had to take a charter flight to Guyana but seven of our boys were stopped as they were not vaccinated. We tried to explain to the immigration officials that India had not started their vaccination yet but they instructed us to take the next flight out of the country," Tenzing, who heads the Sikkim Cricket Association, told PTI.
"We were surrounded by security guys of the airlines as if we would run away from there. And as the argument was on with airline and immigration officials, the only Lufthansa flight available had departed and the next one was after three days. That gave us time to negotiate with local authorities.
"I decided to stay with the boys and we had to stay in a shady hotel near the airport for the night. It was only after the intervention of ICC and local government the matter could be resolved. It was quite a harrowing experience for the boys," he recalled.
This happened in the first week of January when India started the vaccination drive for the 15-18 age group.
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Two Naxalites gunned down in encounter with cops in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur
Bijapur (Chhattisgarh) (PTI): Two Naxalites were killed in an encounter with security personnel in Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh on Thursday, police said.
The exchange of fire broke out in a forest along the Indravati river in the morning when a joint team of security forces was out on an anti-Naxalite operation, a senior police official said.
After guns fell silent, bodies of two Naxalites, clad in uniform, along with a Self-Loading Rifle, an Insas rifle and a 12-bore rifle were recovered from the spot, he said.
Search operation was still underway, he added.
With this action, at least 25 Maoists have been killed in separate encounters in the state so far this year.
Earlier, 14 Maoists were gunned down in two encounters on January 3 in the Bastar region, which comprises seven districts, including Bijapur.
Last year, 285 Maoists were killed in various encounters with security forces in Chhattisgarh.
The Centre has set a deadline of March 31 this year to eradicate Left-Wing Extremism from the country.
