Hosting India Open in Delhi tough: BAI chief

Badminton Association of India (BAI) president Akhilesh Das Gupta on Monday said hosting the $275,000 India Open Superseries here was a difficult task.

"It is very difficult to host a tournament in New Delhi. Getting the venue is difficult, the venue charges are a lot," Das Gupta said on the eve of the India Open.

"It is tough to get clearances whether it is from the DDA or the police. We have protested in the past but it hasn't changed."

The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) owns and manages the state-of-the-art Siri Fort Sports Complex where the tournament is held annually.

However, each year the organisers complain of the heavy rent they pay and getting other clearances from the police.

Also, due to security issues stated by the police, the venue which has a huge parking space, allows only a limited number of cars to be parked.

"There should be a change of system where hosting sports events becomes an easier process. These kind of problems we only face in New Delhi," Das Gupta said.

"We have hosted tournaments in Mumbai, Hyderabad, Lucknow but we do not face any of these problems. BAI may look to hosting the tournament elsewhere in the future... may be Noida or Gurgaon."

The India Open will be held here from March 24 to 29.