The Sports Ministry on Tuesday gave NOC, with no cost to the government, to a 17-member Indian cricket team to travel to Pakistan to participate in the T20 World Cup for the Blind, and the side now awaits clearance from Home and External Affairs ministries.
The fourth edition of the Blind World Cup, in which India are the reigning champions, is scheduled to be played at Lahore and Multan from November 22 to December 3.
Upon receiving the clearance from the ministries concerned, the squad is scheduled to travel to Pakistan via the Wagah Border on November 21.
The development came in the backdrop of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) informing its Pakistan counterpart that the Men in Blue will not travel to the neighbouring nation for next year's Champions Trophy.
The BCCI sent a mail to the International Cricket Council to that effect, leaving the future of the marquee event in limbo.
Meanwhile, Shailender Yadav, General Secretary of the Cricket Association for Blind in India (CABI) said the 17-member Indian squad for the T20 WC was picked after 26 players underwent a 12-day selection trials in Gurugram.
"The team has been training in Gurugram. The players now await an NOC from the Ministry of External Affairs and remain hopeful for a positive response," said Yadav.
Apart from India and Pakistan, the T20 World Cup features teams from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, South Africa, Nepal and Sri Lanka. India won the three previous events, defeating Pakistan twice and Bangladesh once.
Tournament as scheduled: PBCC
The Pakistan Blind Cricket Council (PBCC) said the tournament will go ahead on schedule irrespective of India's participation.
"Pakistan will be hosting the event on schedule and it makes no difference whether the Indian team comes or not," PBCC chairman Syed Sultan Shah said.
Shah said arrangements for hosting the World Cup had been completed by the PBCC.
"All the other teams in the event have also sent confirmation that they have no issues playing in Pakistan," he said.
Indian team for T20 Blind WC: Ajay Kumar Reddy, Debaraj Behera, Nareshbhai Tumda, Nilesh Yadav, Sanjay Kumar Shah, Praveen Kumar Sharma, Venkateswara Rao, Pankaj Bhue, Lokesha, Rambir Singh, Irfan Diwan, Durga Rao Tompaki, Sunil Ramesh, Sukhram Majhi, Ravi Amiti, Dineshbhai Rathva, Dhingar Gopu.
