Delhi prepares for badminton World Championships with monkey and pigeon controls

Published: 14 August 2026 | The English Chronicle Desk | The English Chronicle Online

Delhi is preparing for one of badminton’s biggest international events with an unusual priority alongside the usual preparations for elite sport: keeping monkeys and pigeons out of the stadium.

The Indian capital will host the BWF World Championships at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium from 17 to 23 August, bringing together many of the world’s leading badminton players. But after a series of unexpected wildlife interruptions during the India Open earlier this year, organisers are taking additional precautions to ensure that the attention remains on the athletes rather than the animals.

The measures include replacing wooden doors with automatically locking double-door systems, installing high-grade nets over potential openings and sealing gaps around the stadium. Organisers have also used a non-toxic gel on selected areas and handles where pigeons could potentially land.

The preparations follow an embarrassing episode during January’s India Open, when pigeon droppings interrupted play and a monkey was spotted inside the stadium. The tournament was also affected by concerns about Delhi’s winter air pollution, with several players complaining about the conditions.

For Indian sporting authorities, the forthcoming World Championships represent an opportunity to demonstrate that the capital can host a major international tournament smoothly and professionally.

The Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium is a familiar landmark in Delhi’s sporting landscape. Built for the 1982 Asian Games, the complex was later renovated ahead of the 2010 Commonwealth Games. Officials say the venue has now undergone further work ahead of the badminton championships.

Ambar Pratap Singh, executive director of the Sports Authority of India, said structural upgrades had been carried out at three major arenas within the stadium complex. Lighting has also been addressed following complaints from players during the India Open that shadows were appearing on the badminton court.

But the animal-control measures have attracted perhaps the greatest public curiosity.

Delhi has long struggled with interactions between humans and urban wildlife, particularly rhesus macaques. The smaller monkeys are widespread in the city and have frequently become a nuisance around government buildings, residential areas and public venues.

One traditional method of discouraging rhesus macaques involves the use of langur calls. Langurs are larger, long-tailed monkeys found across much of South Asia, and their calls can frighten rhesus macaques away.

A video showing a man apparently imitating the call of a langur circulated widely on social media in India this week. Several reports suggested that people capable of mimicking the larger monkeys had been brought in to protect the World Championships venue.

The Badminton Association of India has, however, clarified that it has not specifically hired someone for that purpose as part of its championship preparations.

Sanjay Mishra, the association’s general secretary, told the BBC that a person capable of imitating langur calls had briefly been present in the northern section of the large stadium complex. He said the individual was not specifically employed by the association as a dedicated monkey-control worker.

The unusual story nevertheless captured public imagination, partly because the tactic has a long history in Delhi.

During the 2010 Commonwealth Games, authorities used real black-faced langurs at some venues to discourage rhesus macaques from entering areas being used by athletes and visitors.

When India hosted the G20 summit in 2023, authorities adopted a different approach. Life-size cutouts of langurs were placed at various locations around Delhi in an effort to deter monkeys.

The measures ahead of the badminton championships are more focused on preventing animals from entering the stadium in the first place.

According to Mishra, potential entry points have been examined across the venue. Openings have been covered with nets, while gaps in the roof and exhaust vents have been sealed or repaired. The introduction of automatically locking double doors is intended to provide an additional barrier against birds and animals entering the building.

Pigeons were a particularly visible problem during the India Open.

A men’s singles match between Singapore’s Loh Kean Yew and India’s HS Prannoy was interrupted twice after pigeon droppings landed on the court. What should have been a sporting contest became an unexpected discussion about stadium management and the difficulties of hosting indoor events in a densely populated city.

The problem is not merely cosmetic. A badminton court must be kept clean and safe, and interruptions caused by contamination can disrupt players’ concentration and affect the rhythm of a match.

The January tournament also placed Delhi’s environmental conditions under scrutiny.

During the cooler months, northern India frequently experiences severe air pollution, with Delhi among the areas most affected. This year was no exception. Players reported difficulties dealing with the air, particularly when travelling outdoors.

Loh said he struggled to breathe and wore a mask outside his hotel room, while Danish player Mia Blichfeldt described the conditions as unhealthy.

Those complaints added another layer of pressure for organisers already dealing with the unexpected appearance of wildlife inside the venue.

The World Championships therefore offer India a chance to present a different image.

The tournament will feature reigning world champions Shi Yuqi of China in the men’s singles and Akane Yamaguchi of Japan in the women’s singles. India will also have considerable interest in the competition, with two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu among the country’s leading hopes on home soil.

For Indian badminton fans, the focus will naturally be on the results. For organisers, however, the event carries a broader significance.

India is increasingly seeking a greater role as a host of major international sporting competitions. The country is scheduled to host the Commonwealth Games in 2030 and has also expressed ambitions to stage the Olympic Games in 2036.

The ability to manage everything from venue infrastructure and lighting to security, environmental conditions and unexpected wildlife encounters is therefore part of the wider test.

The monkey and pigeon preparations may sound unusual, but they reflect the practical challenges of operating a major sporting facility in one of the world’s largest and most densely populated cities.

The authorities are attempting to address the problem before the first shuttlecock is struck rather than waiting for another animal-related interruption to become an international headline.

There is also an element of symbolism in the preparations. The India Open showed how quickly a major sporting event can become associated with issues unrelated to the competition itself. Pigeon droppings stopping a match and a monkey appearing inside the stadium provided memorable images, but they were hardly the publicity Indian badminton officials would have wanted.

This time, the intention is to make the venue less accessible to Delhi’s opportunistic wildlife and more suitable for the world’s best badminton players.

For the organisers, that means keeping doors closed, sealing gaps, installing protective nets and dealing with potential pigeon landing areas. It also means ensuring that the venue’s structural and lighting improvements meet the standards expected at a global championship.

The measures will inevitably attract humour and curiosity, particularly in a city where monkey-control stories have become part of public life. But behind the novelty is a serious effort to avoid preventable disruptions.

A successful World Championships would give India an opportunity to demonstrate that lessons from earlier events have been taken seriously.

If everything goes according to plan, the coming week in Delhi will be remembered for powerful smashes, long rallies, dramatic victories and the emergence of new champions.

The organisers will have achieved their goal if the monkeys remain outside, the pigeons stay away from the court and the headlines are finally dominated by badminton.

For a country eager to establish itself as a major destination for international sport, that may be the most important victory of all.

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