World Cup mania: 9,000 football-crazy Kolkatans visit Qatar, more to travel ahead of final match
Kolkata, Dec 11: The euphoria surrounding this year's FIFA World Cup has been "unprecedented" in football-mad Kolkata, with nearly 9,000 fans having already travelled to Qatar to witness the showpiece event and many more slated to arrive in the next few days, officials said.
People are still making queries regarding ticket and accommodation availability and travel packages for Qatar, days ahead of the semi-finals and the final next week, they said.
"Around 10,000-12,000 football fans have travelled to Qatar from eastern India so far, including close to 9,000 people from Kolkata. People are still very keen to make it to the semis and the final, and we expect at least another 1,500 Kolkatans to visit the Arab country," Anil Punjabi, eastern region head of Travel Agents' Federation of India (TAFI), told PTI.
Though the craze for the business end of the world cup has died down to an extent following the exit of giants such as Brazil and Portugal, Argentina's advance to the semi-finals is reason enough for many of Kolkata's football enthusiasts to pack their bags for Qatar.
"It's all about Messi this time as it will be his last world cup. I had made up my mind months ago that if Argentina progresses to the semis, I will head to Qatar. Who knows, I might actually see Messi lifting the coveted trophy, which would be an unreal experience," Subham Mitra, a resident of Lake Gardens, said.
Mitra said he will depart for Doha (Qatar capital) in the early hours of Monday. The average return fare to Doha costs around Rs 55,000-60,000 at present.
Argentina will take on Croatia in the first semi-final on Wednesday.
"Kolkata's football frenzy for this edition of the world cup has been unprecedented because of two main factors -- direct flights to Qatar, and the urge to travel more post the COVID-19 pandemic, especially during major global events," Punjabi said.
The senior TAFI official also said Qatar will turn into a popular travel destination for people of east India, courtesy of the world cup.
"Qatar wasn't among the sought-after tourist spots before the mega event, but the sporting spectacle has added great value to the place and we expect that more and more people will add it to their must-visit list," Punjabi added.
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SGPC writes to Mann, seeks ban on 'Emergency' in Punjab a day before release
Amritsar, Jan 16 (PTI): The SGPC on Thursday wrote to Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, seeking a ban on the release of Kangana Ranaut's movie 'Emergency' saying it "tarnishes" the image of Sikhs and "misrepresents" history.
Actor and BJP MP Ranaut's 'Emergency' is slated to release in cinemas on January 17.
In the letter to Mann, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee chief Harjinder Singh Dhami expressed strong objection to Ranaut's film.
Dhami said that if the film is released in Punjab, it will spark "outrage and anger" in the Sikh community and therefore it is the responsibility of the government to ban its release in the state.
The SGPC, an apex gurdwara body, had earlier also protested the film.
"It has come to our attention that the movie 'Emergency' produced by BJP MP Kangana Ranaut is going to be released on 17th January 2025 in cinemas in different cities of Punjab and the tickets have also started to be booked," its letter to Mann read.
Dhami said the SGPC had also protested the release of the movie in a letter to the Punjab Chief Secretary on November 14 last year.
"But it is sad that the Punjab government has not taken any step till now. If this film is released on January 17, 2025, then it is natural to create outrage and anger in the Sikh world," the current letter read.
Dhami said the SGPC will submit a letter also to all the deputy commissioners in Punjab, seeking a ban on the film in the state.
The SGPC denounced the "character assassination" of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, the Khalistani militant killed in 1984 in a military operation.
"If this film is released in Punjab, we will be forced to strongly oppose it at the state level," Dhami said.
In August last year, the SGPC sent a legal notice to the producers of the 'Emergency' film, alleging that it "misrepresented" the character and history of Sikhs, and asked them to remove the objectionable scenes depicting "anti-Sikh" sentiments.
In the notice, the producers of the film, including Kangana Ranaut, were asked to remove the trailer released on August 14 from all public and social media platforms and tender a written apology to the Sikh community.
The SGPC objected to film writing separate letters to the Minister of Information and Broadcasting and the Central Board of Film Certification.
