NEW DELHI: In a bid to prevent a repeat of the failures that marred January’s India Open, the Badminton World Federation (BWF) and local organisers are executing a comprehensive overhaul of the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium ahead of the upcoming BWF World Championships, to be held here from August 17-23.
Speaking on the venue’s operational readiness, BWF Events Director (Tournament Operations) Selvam Supramaniam detailed the series of infrastructural repairs, deep-cleaning initiatives, and animal control measures aimed at rectifying issues highlighted in the federation’s post-India Open audit.
“A lot of work has been done,” said Supramaniam, following his site visits stretching from February through recent days. “Renovations to all the toilets, deep cleaning done on seats, damaged seats replaced, and a lot of sealing and wiring work. The waterproofing was done on the roof itself, which was one of the first projects that they (Sports Authority of India) did.”
Addressing the persistent problem of bird droppings that marred the India Open, SAI has used specialised anti-pest gels across the ceiling beams.
“They’ve finished putting gel on the roof. This gel prevents birds from perching on the beams, similar to what you’ll find near airports. The last three days that I’ve been there, I’ve not seen any pigeons. So, I don’t know whether that’s simply because there are a lot of people, or the gel is actually doing its job,” Supramaniam said.
Stray dogs have also been actively cleared from the premises by SAI, which owns the Indira Gandhi sports complex.
“From what I heard, they rounded up almost 60 dogs, and they were sent away,” said Supramaniam, adding that no monkeys had been spotted in recent site inspections. “I’ve not seen any monkeys as well… that is something that we will need to regularly check.”
With SAI handing over control of the venue to the Badminton Association of India (BAI) on Wednesday, operations have shifted to the main field of play. The wooden sub-flooring is complete, the lighting truss and rig are scheduled to be mounted ahead of the court mats on August 7.
Despite the visible progress, Supramaniam said that vigilance remains necessary right up to the opening day.
“There’s still a lot more cleaning to be done. That’s simply because there are so many workmen in the venue. It’s a huge stadium, and understandably, a lot of workmen are going in and out, and with rain, it is bound to get dirty. We just need to keep doing the cleaning work,” he added.
Supramaniam acknowledged that SAI and BAI have addressed the bulk of the report submitted by the BWF in February, even extending work to exterior landscaping. “All in all, plenty of work, thanks to SAI and BAI. For us, we are more interested in the venue itself, and they’ve done it,” he said.
To elevate the event above a standard BWF World Tour stop, BAI has brought in international technical assistance, including specialised lighting consultants from Indonesia who previously worked on the Indonesia Open and Indonesia Masters.
However, Supramaniam clarified that structural execution takes precedence over visual flair.
“Our intention, of course, is to show a difference between India Open and the World Championships. The lighting during India Open was below expectations. We are working on it, bringing in consultants… so the sports presentation, we expect a better show,” he said.
Supramaniam concluded that BWF’s focus remains uncompromised. “Does it really have to be massively different from India Open? No. Our main focus still is to deliver a tournament that’s free from any problems. The focus is always competition first. The rest is all show,” he said.
