For celebrities, business people and politicians, Ahmedabad is the place to be this weekend, with many of them planning to fly to the city for the Cricket World Cup final between India and Australia.
Charter flights to Ahmedabad are at three times the regular number this weekend, aviation sources say,as the who’s who descend on the city. From around 235 air transport movements (ATMs) every day, the airport is likely to end up handling more than 300 a day over the weekend.
The guest list for the World Cup final, being held in India after 12 years, includes Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Ambani, Adani and Jindal families (both Sajjan and Naveen Jindal), who have all been given invites for the occasion, officials at the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said.
Alongside Modi will be Australia’s deputy prime minister Richard Marles, who will be in India for the two-plus-two ministerial dialogue that begins on Monday. Marles will arrive a day earlier to attend the final on Sunday, sources said.
Also likely to be in attendance will be chief ministers of eight states as well RBI governor Shaktikanta Das. And so will be former cricketers Kapil Dev and MS Dhoni, who both led World Cup winning teams for India.
Bollywood celebrities such as Shah Rukh Khan, Ranbir Kapoor and Vicky Kaushal are expected to attend. The three actors have big releases lined up in December and will be happy to engage with fans at the Narendra Modi Stadium.
With a seating capacity of 132,000 spectators, the world’s largest cricket stadium also has 75 corporate boxes, which will all be packed to the hilt, as top industrialists will look to rub shoulders with sports stars, entertainment personalities, political leaders and office bearers from the BCCI and International Cricket Council (ICC) members.
“The Cricket World Cup final is a showpiece event. This time it is doubly exciting because India is the host nation as well as the finalist,” says Arun Singh Dhumal, former BCCI treasurer, who is now the chairman of the Indian Premier League. “I am headed to Ahmedabad. And I do expect the who’s who to be there,” he says.
A 10-minute air show before the final match by the Indian Air Force’s Surya Kiran aerobatic unit, followed by performances by singers Dua Lipa, Jonita Gandhi, Aditya Gadhvi and music composer Pritam Chakraborty are all part of the itinerary, it is reliably learnt.
While hotel rates as well as air fares to Ahmedabad have shot through the roof, carriers such as Vistara have deployed eight additional flights to cater to last-minute travel to the city. This includes three additional flights from Delhi and five additional flights from Mumbai from 18 to 20 November. The aircraft deployed include three A321s, three A320s and one Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner.