NEW DELHI – India’s Eden Gardens stadium in Kolkata is drawing up plans to offer free medical check-ups to fans in a bid to fill the ground during the World Cup, a newspaper reported Thursday.
Eden Gardens has been left with three games not involving the home nation after the India v England clash on Sunday was moved to Bangalore as the venue was not ready on time.
“We have decided to do something benevolent for the spectators. Our president is in talks with private hospitals and health centres to put the plan into practice,” Sujan Mukherjee, joint secretary of the Cricket Association of Bengal, told the Indian Express.
Under the proposal, anyone who buys tickets worth more than 750 rupees ($16.50) will be entitled to a free blood pressure check, echocardiogram and consultation with doctors. The 67,000-seater stadium in Kolkata will host South Africa v Ireland on March 15, Ireland v the Netherlands on March 18 and Zimbabwe v Kenya on March 20. “Everything put together, and with the incentive added, we expect an attendance of over 40,000,” Mukherjee said.
