: Instead of playing Pakistan in the UAE, as has been proposed, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) wants to host the neighbouring country at home in December.The Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre has, of course, not been formally approached for permission, which is mandatory. That would be done within a few days.At least two ministries, external affairs and home, come into the picture. Then, there's the PMO.According to well-placed sources of The Telegraph, president Shashank Manohar himself revealed the "BCCI's intent" during the AGM today.One of the well-placed sources quoted Manohar, who'd been threatened by Shiv Sainiks here three weeks ago, as saying: "We're committed to playing Pakistan..."We can't go to that country and won't play in the UAE either, as suggested by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB)...."Instead, the BCCI would like to host Pakistan at home in December and the matches could be played in north India."Manohar, who stays in Nagpur, which is very much part of Maharashtra, intentionally didn't talk of the matches not being held in his state, where the Shiv Sena is part of the government."Please don't take 'north India' to mean that the other regions would all be left out. Manohar didn't want to make it too obvious, which is why he merely spoke of one part of the country...."One can rest assured that if Pakistan does come to India, the matches would be held beyond north India as well," explained another office-bearer of the BCCI.As for the commitment, it was made during the time that Narayanswami Srinivasan was the BCCI president and figures in the International Cricket Council's calendar.While Manohar didn't spell out the number of matches, the MoU between the two boards is understood to involve two Tests and five ODIs.So, seven venues, one surely being Calcutta."I don't know whether Pakistan would come or not, but the Eden Gardens is scheduled to be ready (after the improvements) by the end of this month," Sourav Ganguly, the Cricket Association of Bengal president, told this reporter.Shaharyar Khan, the PCB chairman, has been harping on the MoU for the past few months, desperately wanting bilateral cricket to be revived.What was mentioned at the BCCI's AGM should delight Shaharyar who, thanks to the Shiv Sainiks, couldn't meet Manohar last month.The last bilateral exchange, featuring ODIs and T20Is, was in India in the 2012-13 season. At the Test level, India and Pakistan haven't played each other after the 2007-08 series in India.If the Modi government gives the go-ahead and the PCB gets Islamabad's blessings, which is most likely, then a formula would be devised to "compensate" Pakistan.The UAE, after all, has become Pakistan's "home" venue after the terror strike near Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium in March 2009.By playing in India, the PCB would lose much-needed revenue. That's why the compensation."It's possible that 50 per cent of the earnings from broadcast rights would be given to the PCB," another well-placed source said.However, as with everything to do between India and Pakistan, it's best not to lay a wager till the last minute. Much could change in a matter of days, if not hours.