Mumbai: Allow indoor sports as well, say players

Representation pic

After demands from retailers, traders, and gym and salon owners, those engaged in indoor sports activities have also demanded that they should be allowed to resume services. Associations of players have argued that when gyms and health clubs have been allowed to operate, the same rules should apply to them too.

With the number of cases dropping in the city and active cases subsequently reducing, sports such as badminton, table tennis and squash should be allowed even if it is for limited hours, the associations have said. They can be allowed to operate till 4 pm like the rest of the businesses, they said.

Associations said that for the past two years, players have been deprived of proper training and have to stay away from their beloved sports, thus losing out on competitiveness. The Maharashtra Badminton Association's Arun Lakhani, said, "We have made various representations to the government and we will be following up with them again. If gyms can be allowed then we should also be given a fair chance with proper guidelines in place to practise as the sport any way does not involve close contact."

A member of the Table Tennis Association of Mumbai, Dhananjay Sathe, said, "Our players are being deprived of their beloved sport. We can follow guidelines and operate till the permissible time but the BMC and government are hardly thinking about us, which is not at all fair." Currently, as per the BMC order, swimming pools are completely shut whereas, gyms and spas are allowed to operate from 7 am to 4 pm from Monday to Friday. Gyms are giving members time slots and sanitising equipment. A badminton player from the city, who did not wish to be named, said that indoor games can also be conducted in a similar manner.

Also read: Let elderly, children be allowed out with necessary precautions, say experts