BCCI ad-hoc committee to visit Patna on Tuesday

Mumbai, Aug 16: The newly-formed ad-hoc committee set up by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for Bihar will visit Patna on Tuesday, said an official here.

BCCI formed two committees on August 7 for Bihar and Uttarakhand "to protect the interest of the players" in these two states. The committees comprise five members each and these are headed respectively by former BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah (Bihar) and former treasurer MP Pandove (Uttarakhand).

Shah is assisted by Goa Cricket Association secretary Vinod Phadke, Tripura Cricket Association secretary Sourav Dasgupta, Gujarat Cricket Association executive member Bharat Zaveri, and BCCI game co-ordinator Ratnakar Shetty.

In its first visit, the committee will take stock of cricketing facilities available in Patna. The visit will pave way to the starting of selection trials of Under-16, Under-19 and Under-23 age groups to enable Bihar cricketers to participate in the BCCI Associate and Affiliate tournaments this season, said an official release on Sunday.

Cricket in Bihar has been in shambles due to the absence of a representative body with no first-class matches staged in the state for several years.

BCCI president Jagmohan Dalmiya said: "As BCCI looks forward to resumption of cricketing activities in Bihar, I would wish all the very best to the members of the ad-hoc committee.

"It is the responsibility of the Board to make sure that the budding cricketers from the state of Bihar are not deprived and the Board has taken this initiative to ensure that they are provided opportunities to showcase their talent. I am sure the ad-hoc committee under the leadership of Niranjan Shah would create positive environment for the upcoming cricketers of Bihar," Dalmiya said in the release.

BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur opined that the Board needs to look into the well-beings of the cricketers from Bihar, so that they have more cricketers playing for the country.

"The BCCI is committed to conducting cricket activities in all the states of India and, therefore, we have set up the ad-hoc committees. The committee's first visit to Bihar is a new ray of hope for the cricketers of the state and will help them fulfil their dream to emulate Mahendra Singh Dhoni and represent India in the future," Thakur said.