Internet Desk: Six North Indian states will be given a chance to play as separate teams in the upcoming Ranji Trophy after receiving assurance from Committee of Administrators (COA) on September 9.
Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, Sikkim, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh met Vinod Rai with a request of playing as a combined unit for this season.
However, they were assured that by next season they would be part of Ranji Trophy while they will play as separate states in the age group categories (U-16, U-19 And U-23) from this season onwards.
“Mr Rai told us that since Ranji Trophy is starting from October 6, it will be difficult to play this season. However we will be playing as individual states from next season. After all these years, this is the first time we have got complete assurance. Prof Shetty will look into implementation part,” north east convenor Naba Bhattacharjee said.
The good news is that COA has decided that U-16 National Championship (Vinoo Mankad) and U-23 (CK Nayudu Trophy) will have a specific North East Zone.
“The U-16 and U-23 BCCI tournaments are held zone wise. While Assam and Tripura continue to play in East Zone, a dedicated North East Zone will be created. The top two from the zone will qualify for the knock outs,” Bhattacharjee added.
The only problem is Cooch Behar Trophy (U-19), whose scheduled has been already chalked out.
“The COA said that technical committee chairman Sourav Ganguly will take a call in this regard,” he further added.
It was learnt that when the units requested for disbursement of annual grants, Rai instructed them to file an affidavit signed by their presidents that atleast 80 percent recommendations of Lodha Panel is adhered to.
“We told COA that you don’t need to disburse huge amounts to new units like us but enough funds to run the show,” he added.
It was also learnt that Assam Cricket Association (ACA) has taken a bank loan of Rs 6 crore for organisation of the T20 international match between Australia and India at its newly constructed stadium in Barsapara.
The ACA currently doesn’t get BCCI grants as there has been an adverse report of financial discrepancies found in its audited accounts.
“We are taking a bank loan of Rs 6 crore and CM of Assam Sarbananda Sonowal also has assured help on behalf of the state government,” said ACA Secretary Pradip Buragohain.