The India-South Africa ICC World Cup match on Sunday provided a platform for Siliguri cricket enthusiasts to raise the demand for a cricket stadium in the north Bengal city.

Many residents of Siliguri who attended the match in Calcutta were seen holding placards demanding a cricket stadium while the match was being played at the Eden Gardens in Calcutta.

On Tuesday, representatives from Siliguri Mahakuma Krira Parishad (SMKP), which is the district sports body, decided to appeal to the state government to allocate land for the stadium.

The Siliguri sub-division has a separate district sports association.

“An exclusive stadium for cricket is a long-standing demand that was once again reflected at Eden Gardens on Sunday. We are overwhelmed by the sentiment of the cricket lovers of Siliguri and we have decided to approach chief minister Mamata Banerjee and state sports and youth affairs department for providing plots where an exclusive cricket infrastructure can be established,” said Kuntal Goswami, the general secretary of the SMKP.

The sports body said it would be easy to approach the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to help them develop cricket infrastructure after land is assigned for the stadium.

“Once we get the plot from the state government it would be easier for us to approach some of the apex bodies of cricket like the BCCI or the CAB to develop an exclusive infrastructure for cricket. We will also approach Siliguri mayor Gautam Deb, who is also well aware of the lack of a cricket ground here,” Goswami said.

The existing Kanchenjunga stadium in Siliguri, spread over around 27 acres was established in late 1980s.

It has a capacity of 27,000 spectators.

It was, however, decided that the stadium would only host football matches.

The responsibility for the maintenance of the dilapidated condition of the stadium was handed to the Siliguri Municipal Corporation by the state sports and youth affairs department for the past one year.

The lack of a good stadium for cricket in Siliguri has been raised in many quarters.

Sports-loving Siliguri has produced international cricketers like Wriddhiman Saha and Richa Ghosh.

Richa, the current wicketkeeper-cum-batter of the Indian Women’s Cricket Team, during a recent visit to her hometown, also spoke of the need for a good cricket stadium in Siliguri.

“We are also looking at holding meetings with different organisations and trade outfits to take forward this demand for a stadium in Siliguri,” said Manoj Verma, the cricket secretary of the SMKP, adding that a stadium would not only help budding cricketers but also in the future host matches.