It was packed, tiring, even overwhelming at times, but everyone coped satisfactorily
At around 1.30 pm, the roads in Chandigarh were awash with cars, the sunlight shifting from the flowers in bloom to the gaily coloured rows of vehicles, everyone rushing home from work early to watch the cricket match of the year.
All eating places and bars were packed to capacity and all other offices were shut. A concerted, resounding roar would go up when the match took a significant turn. Nothing was as important as what was happening on the field: How else, when the most important people in India were sitting in the stadium?
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress party president Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi arrived together. Robert Vadra came separately with the children and Priyanka Vadra arrived separately. Minister of state for communications, Sachin Pilot, was minister in waiting for Pakistani PM Yousuf Raza Gilani. The two PMs met each other, met the teams and sat together as the match started.
There was a minor flap at the airport when the Pak PM’s plane landed: One of the entourage had hopped on without a visa. Temporary arrangements were made right there at the airport.
It wasn’t just the roads that were jammed in anticipation. There was a traffic jam at the domestic airport as well. Airport Director H S Toor told Business Standard: “We handled 98 flights, including landing and departure, from 6 am to 2.30 pm, excluding those of the Indian and Pak Prime ministers. Of 49 incoming flights, eight were scheduled, seven were additional flights and 34 were charter flights.This is a record.”
Delhi and Mumbai’s Beautiful People contributed to the rush — actor Aamir Khan and wife, Kiran; Vijay Mallya, Praful Patel and other celebrities arrived in their own planes.
Chandigarh airport, at the best of times, can handle only 150 passengers at a time. There is space to park only two civilian aircrafts, besides the current strength of two commercial flights. Still, the city coped more than adequately. VIPs flying private planes were told to drop passengers at Chandigarh and then fly to Amritsar’s Raja Sansi for parking, said an official. The latter’s airport director, Suneel Dutt, said they had got 20 requests from corporate and private charter operators to park their planes.
At around 5.30 pm, the two PMs took a break. Both retired for a nap. They returned to the stadium at around 6.30 pm and stayed on till the end. When asked if they would have a one-to-one meeting, a ministry of external affairs official snapped: “They’re sitting in the same box, next to one another. How much more one-on-one do you want?”
In the stadium, the two PMs spoke briefly to reporters. Gilani said: “May the best team win.” Singh said: “We wish the players all the very best.”
In the evening, they had dinner. On the menu was tandoori salmon, ghosht barra, chicken tandoori, murgh lazeez, special dal and bhindi, chhamp ki biryani, shahi idlis, sabz biryani, tawa ki machhi, etc. Five starters and beverages, including fresh coconut water, jal jeera and pomegranate and orange juice were served. Kesari phirni, rabri and gulkand ka kalakand were served as afters.
But the games? Except for the visa-less visitor, there were none. And, yet, the gentlemen’s game was played exactly as it should be, by both PMs as gentlemen.
