IPL very much on, all measures will be in place to handle coronavirus threat: Ganguly
Kolkata: The Indian Premier League (IPL) is "very much on schedule"," BCCI President Sourav Ganguly told PTI on Friday, asserting that all measures will be in place to tackle the rapidly-spreading novel coronavirus threat which has wreaked havoc on sporting calendars globally.
The glitzy T20 event, featuring both Indian and international stars, gets underway on March 29 in Mumbai. India's coronavirus patient count currently stands at 31, including 16 Italian tourists. Internationally, the deadly outbreak has so far killed more than 3,300 people and infected nearly 100,000 in about 85 countries.
"IPL is very much on. Everywhere, the tournaments are going on. England are already in Sri Lanka. South Africa are here. There are no issues," Ganguly asserted.
"County teams are travelling all over the world. They are travelling to Abu Dhabi, UAE to play. So there is no problem," he added.
Asked about the precautionary measures to ensure that players and fans are not affected, Ganguly said a medical team is thrashing out the specifics.
"We will take all precautions. I don't know exactly what are the extra measures. It's only medical team which will tell us about that," he said.
"The medical team is already in touch with the hospitals so that everything is available. We will do what the doctors say. They are the professionals.
"All medical issues will be addressed by the medical team. Every tournament will go on," he added.
The coronavirus outbreak has severely impacted the global sporting schedules with one of the disease epicentres, Italy, banning fans from venues till April.
Olympic test events have been postponed or cancelled in Japan, another badly-affected country.
There are growing concerns about the fate of the Tokyo Olympics in July-August despite the International Olympic Committee's assertion that the quadrennial showpiece will go ahead as planned.
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Heatwave scorches Odisha, Jharsuguda reels under 43.6 degrees C
Bhubaneswar (PTI): Heatwave conditions scorched Odisha on Tuesday, with the IMD forecasting that hot and humid conditions would continue in parts of the state.
The IMD’s Bhubaneswar centre said Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Kendrapara, Cuttack, Jagatsinghpur, Puri, Khurda, Nayagarh, Ganjam and Gajapati districts were likely to experience hot and humid conditions on April 22.
It also predicted thunderstorms accompanied by lightning and gusty surface winds in parts of Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar, Puri, Khurda, Nayagarh, Ganjam, Gajapati, Rayagada and Koraput, among others.
On Tuesday, 18 places across Odisha recorded maximum temperatures of 40 degrees Celsius or above. The industrial town of Jharsuguda was the hottest in the state at 43.6 degrees Celsius.
Sambalpur and Titlagarh recorded 42.5 degrees Celsius each, followed by Hirakud at 42.4 degrees, Bolangir at 42.2 degrees and Angul at 42.1 degrees.
The twin cities of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack recorded 37.9 degrees Celsius and 38.8 degrees Celsius, respectively, with relative humidity levels remaining above 70 per cent.
Meanwhile, the state government directed all district education officers to conduct a Summer Learning Programme for students till class 8 in government schools during the summer vacation.
Officials said students would be given practice assignments along with audio-visual learning content.
Subject-wise assignment sheets have been prepared, while related digital material will be shared through school parents' WhatsApp groups using a chatbot system, they said.
