Forget cricket: One lakh cheer as India, Pakistan players wrestle it out in Pimpri
indianexpress: Forget Sachin Tendulkar and Shoaib Akhtar. Forget Kolkata and Chennai. Even when players who are not household names in India and Pakistan battle it out on a wrestling pitch, the turn out is as big as it could get. Over one lakh people — some peg it at 1.5 lakh — cheered, clapped, whistled and broke into jigs as players from both the countries locked bodies to flatten their rivals.
Welcome to the industrial town of Pimpri-Chinchwad. On Saturday, it witnessed a historic gathering. For eight hours — from 12 noon to 8 pm — this town housing big names like Tata Motors, Bajaj Auto, Thermax, Philips, came to a virutal standstill as all roads led to Annasaheb Magar stadium where international players from both the countries put their physical prowess to test. Old-timers say Saturday’s turned out looked almost similiar to the one during Rajiv Gandhi’s rally held at Sanghvi Keshri College grounds 22 years back.
The wrestling matches were organised by NCP to mark the 67th birthday of party supremo Sharad Pawar, the Union Agriculture Minister. Pimpri-Chinchwad is a part of Pawar’s Baramati Lok Sabha constituency. It has voted overwhelmingly for Pawar in all the past Lok Sabha elections. Pawar, his nephew Ajit, town’s mayor Vaishali Ghodekar, Municipal Commissioner Dilip Band and several corporators from both Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation and Pune Municipal Corporation were present.
