Imagine struggling for drinking water while millions of litres are used for a cricket match. That’s exactly what happened in Rajasthan during IPL 2016—here’s how fans fought back
The IPL is more than just a cricket tournament—it’s a festival, a spectacle, an obsession. However, in 2016, the league faced an unexpected challenge in Rajasthan, not from rival teams but from the very people who usually filled the stands.
Around 50 youths gathered outside the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur on a sweltering April afternoon. They weren’t there to cheer for their favourite teams; instead, they were protesting against the Rajasthan government’s decision to allow IPL matches despite a severe water crisis in the state.
This wasn’t merely a few voices raised in frustration. The issue had already reached the Rajasthan High Court, with a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) questioning whether an entertainment event could justify using 80 lakh litres of water when countless people struggled to access drinking water.
Rajasthan is no stranger to water shortages, but 2016 proved particularly severe. The state capital, Jaipur, was among the worst-affected areas, with wells running dry and tankers struggling to meet demand. People had to queue for hours to collect water; in some regions, supply was limited to once every few days.
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Against this backdrop, IPL matches appeared out of place. The matches required enormous amounts of water—not just for the players but also for pitch maintenance, ground preparation, hospitality, and sanitation. The notion of utilising millions of litres of water for a cricket tournament while people grappled with their basic needs felt like a misallocation of resources to many.
The protests on the streets were mirrored in the courts as local journalist Mahesh Pareek filed a PIL in the Rajasthan High Court, arguing that Jaipur had been classified as a “Dark Zone” due to its rapidly depleting groundwater levels. The petition emphasised the need for the government to prioritise water conservation over commercial entertainment.
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Taking the issue seriously, the division bench of Justice Ajay Rastogi and Justice D.C. Somani issued notices to several authorities, including the Union Ministry of Youth Affairs, the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA), the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), and the Rajasthan Chief Secretary. The court sought their responses on whether the matches should proceed under these circumstances.
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The IPL has always been a revenue-driven tournament, with major sponsorship deals, high ticket sales, and broadcasting rights amounting to hundreds of crores. Cancelling or relocating matches was not merely an inconvenience; it was a financial setback for the franchise owners, broadcasters, and local businesses reliant on IPL-related income.
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At the same time, the optics of using 80 lakh litres of water for cricket in a state grappling with drought did not resonate well with the public. The debate extended beyond sports versus real-life challenges—it was fundamentally about priorities.
Could entertainment take precedence over essential resources?
Despite the uproar, the IPL matches proceeded as planned in Rajasthan, albeit with increased scrutiny on water usage. Some measures were implemented to reduce the quantity of water used for pitch maintenance, yet the protest had already made an impact.
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More significantly, this was not an isolated incident. Similar water-related protests erupted in Maharashtra that same year, resulting in the relocation of matches from Mumbai and Pune to other states. This compelled IPL organisers to reconsider how tournaments could be hosted in drought-affected areas.
The IPL has always been characterised by passion and drama, but for once, the most significant battle was not between teams on the field—it was between sport and survival.
