New Delhi, Feb 17: Defending champions Gujarat Titans will play four-time winners Chennai Super Kings to begin the upcoming Indian Premier League in Ahmedabad on March 31.

The Titans, led by Hardik Pandya, won the title in their debut season last year.

According to the schedule announced by the BCCI on Friday, there will be a total of 52 round-robin matches.

The first double-header of the season will see Punjab Kings taking on Kolkata Knight Riders in Mohali and Lucknow Super Giants facing Delhi Capitals in Lucknow on April 1.

While the weekdays will feature one match, double headers are scheduled every Saturday and Sunday.

The league matches end on May 21, with a tie between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Titans in Bengaluru.

After staging the league across Mumbai, Pune and Ahmedabad in the last edition, the 16th season will revert to the home and away format, where all the teams will play seven home games and as many away matches respectively in the league stage.

According to the BCCI, a total of 70 league stage matches will be played across 12 venues over the course of 52 days.

The IPL 2023 will have 18 double headers, with the day games starting at 3:30 PM and the evening matches beginning at 07:30 in the evening.

Rajasthan Royals will play their first two home games in Guwahati before playing the remainder of their home matches in Jaipur.

Punjab Kings will play their five home matches in Mohali and their last two home games in Dharamshala against Delhi Capitals and Rajasthan Royals respectively.

The schedule and venues for the play-offs and final will be announced later. The summit clash will be played on May 28.

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Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Minister M B Patil on Tuesday chaired meetings with industry representatives from the aerospace and defence, machine tools, auto/EV, and green energy sectors to discuss sector growth and government support measures.

The meetings were attended by leading industrialists and their representatives, with some participating virtually.

Speaking on the occasion, the minister for Large and Medium Industries said Karnataka is at the forefront of the country’s aerospace and defence sectors.

He noted that Suzuki and Toyota plan to launch aerial taxi services in Japan by 2028, with Bengaluru-based Sasmos supplying electrical equipment for the project.

Industrialists suggested introducing similar “fly-taxi” services in Karnataka through an appropriate policy, which Patil said would be examined seriously.

The minister highlighted the need to establish testing centres and Common Facility Centres for the aerospace and defence industries and assured that these facilities would be provided.

Suggestions were also made to prepare a comprehensive roadmap for sector growth.

Karnataka has urged the Central Government to approve Defence Corridor projects in the Bengaluru North–Kolar–Chikkaballapur and Dharawada–Vijayapura–Belagavi regions.

Industrialists also suggested a corridor between Bengaluru and Mysuru, Patil said.

He said Karnataka aims to become a hub for defence electronics manufacturing, with plans to establish a 200-acre Defence Electronics Park and a 100-acre Avionics and Sensor Park.

These projects will be implemented once the Special Investment Region is operational, and land availability will not be an issue.

On the machine tools sector, Patil said the industry has recorded an annual turnover of Rs 36,500 crore and is witnessing steady growth.

Large-scale exhibitions have increased demand, and the state must strengthen its capabilities to develop control systems for heavy machinery. One testing unit is already operational in Bengaluru, with another planned for Tumakuru. Expansion of vocational training institutes in industrial areas is also underway.

In the Auto and EV sector, Vision Group members highlighted the need for a network of dry ports and more EV charging stations across the state.

Patil noted that the Tata Group is manufacturing EV buses in Dharawada for nationwide supply. Plans for mini excavator production and export facilitation were also discussed, along with the establishment of a testing facility for two-wheeler EVs.

For the Green Energy sector, the group emphasised the need for a suitable policy on battery-based energy storage and the establishment of data centres.

Patil assured that the government will seriously consider all suggestions and respond positively.