The Commonwealth Games may come to India once again. A senior official of the Indian Olympics Association told The Indian Express on Tuesday that they were considering hosting the event in 2022 after the CWG Federation said the Games will no longer be held in Durban, South Africa. Indian will celebrate its 75th year of Independence in 2022.

“We received a communication from them [the CWG Federation] today. Our president and members are discussing the matter. If there is support from the government, we will consider the possibility of bidding for the Games,” IOA Secretary General Rajeev Mehta told The Indian Express.

The CWG Federation has invited bids from interested countries, though without a deadline so far. Mehta pointed out that India was better equipped to organise a tournament of this scale now than it was years earlier, giving the examples of the South Asian Games held in Shillong and Guwahati last year on a minimal budget. The IOA secretary general believes that with the Centre controlling the funds and the organisation’s technical support, they will be able to host the Games well.

On Monday, CEO of the CWG Federation David Grevemberg said Durban did not set the criteria to host the Games and that they were now looking for a new host city. Durban was given the CWG contract in September 2015 and was set to become the first African city to host the event. South African Sports Minister Fikile Mbalula had said last month that the country did not have the necessary funds to stage the Games, according to BBC.

Both Birmingham and Liverpool – along with Australia, the 2018 CWG hosts – have expressed interest in organising the 2022 leg of the quadrennial games.

India had hosted the 2010 Games that spiralled into a massive controversy because of corruption while handing out contracts for them. The scams had attracted much international media coverage as well, especially after facilities for sportspersons at the Games were found unsatisfactory. The Central Bureau of Investigation had probed the matter and filed a chargesheet in connection with it, naming Suresh Kalmadi and others, in 2011. Sheila Dikshit, who was Delhi chief minister at the time, had refuted allegations of corruption against her government and claimed, “Everything was done keeping in mind the national interest and prestige.”