Chidambaram Stadium ready to welcome T20WC with new outfield, drainage system
Chennai (PTI): The loud whirrs of JCBs, lifters and loaders reverberated inside the fabled MA Chidambaram Stadium for eight months instead of the sweet sound of a ball meeting the meat of a cricket bat.
But the whole exercise resulted in a wonderful outfield and drainage system just in time for the ICC T20 World Cup.
So, why did the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) decide to undertake such a time consuming venture with the World Cup approaching?
"See, the last time we did this outfield was I think in 2011, so it has been quite some time. So, this whole exercise has taken us some 8 months starting from June (2025)," TNCA secretary U Bhagwandas Rao told PTI.
“We excavated all the soil, removed all the old pipes. So, it is filled with gravel, river sand, and then the actual grass that you see," he added.
Along with relaying the outfield and carrying out the regular maintenance works, Rao said, the upgradation of the draining system held an important place.
“In between all that, we have changed and completely upgraded the entire drainage system for the stadium, including the motors, the sprinkler systems, the drainage flow out of the stadium…all that has been changed.
"So, that has taken us around seven months and then we finished it off with the synthetic running track. So, that is more or less completed, but the wickets have not changed, all old 9 pitches apart from the routine yearly maintenance," he detailed.
Rao said the rains late last year also helped in gaining some momentum to the repair work.
"The drainage is exceptional. We did not expect it to be so good. The November rains also helped us a lot. You know, nothing like natural testing of all these facilities. It actually kind of accelerated the growth of the grass after planting. I think that helped a lot — the two weeks of heavy rains that we had,” he noted.
Rao said the International Cricket Council (ICC) too inspected the outfield and drainage system thoroughly before giving a thumbs up.
“See, the ICC, when they came, they said it was exceptional. They did not have a problem. All of them liked the stadium and the facility.
“The infrastructure like pavilion, gates, the exits, other common areas…yeah..all that has been completely redeveloped in the last 4-5 years. Of course, Hari (Harihara, the TNCA spokesperson), has been efficient in his coordination, making our job that much easier,” he said.
Rao also said works at Chepauk helped TNCA to give more attention to district grounds, where the association now regularly hosts the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) matches.
“This work actually started three years back when the previous administration took over. I think one of the primary goals or the vision was to develop infrastructure in districts. They should not keep coming back to Chennai because the bulk of the talent is originating from the districts.
“So, the plan was to have these satellite centers which have practice facilities, nets and full residential quarters. So, we have one in Tirupur, in Salem, in Coimbatore and in Theni. We have chambers in Natham (Dindigul).
“They all have come out exceptionally well. So, all our state teams whenever they play board games, we stay at our own facilities. It has also helped the women's cricketers. You know this residential thing is much better for them, as it’s safer for them. Now, many parents too have told us that they feel mentally very comfortable,” he added.
Rao said the TNCA is open to extending these facilities to cricketers from around the country or even outside of it.
“So much care has been given to all these facilities, the outside state associations now have come and seen these facilities, including MCA. Mumbai wants to use the facility whenever they have the monsoons for two months there.
“I am told that some of the foreign boards also want to come and play here. So, the idea is that these are not only for ours, but we want to provide these facilities for as many talents as possible. But the (TNCA) Center of Excellence will be very much in Chennai and all report into the TNCA Academy,” he detailed.
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Resolution for his removal: Speaker Birla to be present in House but not chair proceedings
New Delhi (PTI): The Lok Sabha will witness a rare moment most likely on Monday next when Om Birla will not chair proceedings but will be seated amongst the members as the House takes up a notice seeking his removal from office.
As Parliament meets for the second phase of the Budget session on March 9, the Lok Sabha is likely to take up the resolution moved by the opposition against Birla's for allegedly acting in a "blatantly partisan" manner.
According to the rules and laid down procedure, Birla will get a right to defend himself when the resolution is discussed by the lower house. He will also have the right to vote against the resolution, Constitution expert P D T Achary explained.
The expert said while Birla will not chair the proceedings when the resolution comes up before the House, he will be seated in the prominent rows in the Treasury benches.
At least 118 opposition members had submitted a notice for moving the resolution to remove Birla from office for not allowing Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi and other opposition leaders to speak in the House on the Motion of Thanks to the President's address, as well as for suspending eight MPs.
Congress member and chief whip K Suresh submitted the notice to the Lok Sabha secretariat on behalf of several opposition parties, including his party, Samajwadi Party and DMK.
TMC MPs, however, did not sign the notice.
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Achary, a former Lok Sabha secretary general, told PTI, that the "allocation of the seat, which the Speaker occupies under such circumstances is not mentioned in the Rules".
He said Birla will also not be able to vote on the resolution using the automated vote system, but will have to fill a slip to register his vote.
He presumes that a seat belonging to a Union minister, who is from the Rajya Sabha, could be given to him as only Lok Sabha members will be able to cast their votes for or against the resolution.
Deputy speaker of the Lok Sabha and deputy chairperson of the Rajya Sabha have their earmarked seats in their respective Houses when they are not presiding over.
Front seats in the opposition benches are allocated to them.
Article 96 of the Constitution bars a speaker or a deputy speaker from presiding over the House sitting while a resolution for his removal from office is under consideration.
The speaker has a constitutional right to defend himself in the House if the resolution is discussed in the Lok Sabha.
At least two Lok Sabha members have to sign the notice to move a resolution for the speaker's removal. Any number of members can sign the notice but a minimum of two is mandatory.
The speaker can be removed from office by a resolution passed by the House through a simple majority.
Article 94C of the Constitution has provisions for such a move.
"All the members of the House are counted to compute the majority, not the members present and voting, which is the normal practice. It means the effective membership of the House, except for the vacancies, is used to calculate the majority," Achary said.
The notice has to be submitted to the Lok Sabha secretary general, and not the deputy speaker or anyone else, he said.
The document is then examined at the preliminary stage to see whether it contains "very specific charges", he said.
"At the threshold itself, there is a process of admissibility. At that stage, it is seen whether it contains specific charges. Specific charges are required as only then the speaker will be able to respond," Achary explained.
The resolution must not contain defamatory language or content.
Article 96 gives the speaker the opportunity to defend himself or herself in the House.
The language of the proposed resolution is usually examined by the deputy speaker, but since the present Lok Sabha does not have a deputy speaker, it may be examined perhaps by the senior-most member of the panel of chairpersons.
The panel helps the speaker run the House in his or her absence.
"The speaker examining a resolution that seeks his removal looks absurd," Achary said, adding that the rule is silent on the subject.
Once the processing part is over, the resolution reaches the House. But it can go to the House after 14 days, Achary said.
The chair then places it in the House for consideration. It is actually the House which admits it, or as the rule says, "grants permission".
Achary further said, "The chair then asks members in favour of the resolution to stand up. If 50 members stand up in support of it and if the criteria is fulfilled, the Chair announces that the House has granted permission. Once the House grants permission, it has to be taken up for discussion and disposed of within 10 days."
Lok Sabha sources said it will be taken up for discussion on Monday itself.
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There are precedents of resolutions being moved. However, none has been adopted so far.
"The reason -- governments have a majority," Achary said.
The resolution alleges that Speaker Birla had acted in a "blatantly partisan" manner in conducting the business of the House and "abused" the constitutional office he occupies.
The Opposition also accused the speaker of making certain false allegations against members of the Congress.
Three Lok Sabha speakers -- G V Mavlankar (1954), Hukam Singh (1966) and Balram Jakhar (1987)-- had faced no-confidence motions in the past, which were negatived.
