Our Reporter
Dimapur, Oct. 8 (EMN): There will be three cricket grounds within a 1 km radius of Sovima in the next one year to facilitate hosting of any national and international cricket matches, said Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio on Friday.
Rio was speaking at the inauguration programme of Sovima Cricket Ground at Sovima village in Dimapur.
It has been a long struggle for the Northeast, particularly Nagaland in the field of sports, he said, adding that Nagaland Olympic Association (NOA) was recognised only in 2004, 41 years after receiving statehood, and sportspersons from the state used to represent some other state or corporate prior to that.
He stated that six north-eastern states came together and formed Northeast Cricket Development Committee (NECDC) as smaller states with poor infrastructure were looked down.
The then Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar laid the foundation stone of Nagaland Cricket Stadium at Sovima village in 2006 encouraged the Nagaland Cricket
Association (NCA) and formation of NECDC before Lodha Committee delivered justice by affiliating it to BCCI, he informed.
Recalling the NCA’s struggling days, he said that the association had to borrow money from its own members and the business community, and is still in debt. He added that the association was affiliated to BCCI after the judgement of the Supreme Court under the recommendation of Lodha Committee.
Rio said that in this short span of time, Nagaland cricketers has achieved great heights with players like Jonathan Rongsen and Khrievitso Kense making a name for themselves in the sport. He added that their accomplishments will encourage and motivate other young budding players from the state.
While acknowledging the villagers of Sovima and other neighbouring villages for their contribution, co-operation and support, Rio informed that the ground preparations were done by trained local professionals.
He said that the sporting facility has hostels for boys and girls that can accommodate about 40 to 50 players and there is plan to come up with an indoor stadium as well.
One of the weaknesses of Nagas is getting emotional and excited easily, he said while urging the sportspersons to maintain consistency with determination in order to excel.
“Coming together is magical and let us continue to work together to promote the sports of crickets,” he added.
Speaking on the occasion, Advisor to chief minister and Member Secretary of NECDC, Abu Metha said that the story and journey of Nagaland cricket is long and winding.
He recalled how a few of them -- sports enthusiasts, former cricketers and passionate cricket lovers -- approached the chief minister about a decade-and-a-half ago to help the NCA.
He added that the CM was a little reluctant but they requested him to head the association and make a difference. That historic ‘yes’ from Rio changed the NCA journey, he added.
Metha said that today, the Nagaland Cricket Stadium, Sovima is of national standard and has held first class cricket matches; national and international players had stepped on the pitch and put Nagaland and the Northeast on the international map.
Maintaining that getting NCA affiliated to BCCI was not an easy task, he said that with the support of the CM, they walked the corridors of BCCI, political officers in Delhi and Mumbai and the Supreme Court.
He recalled an incident wherein they were asked to leave a meeting of the BCCI in Mumbai, which was attended by representatives of all affiliated units across the country, as the NCA wasn’t affiliated to the apex body yet.
He went on to say that they were requested not to speak about the incident to the press but they did and the issue of north-eastern states of being discriminated was raised, which was noticed by the Lodha Commission.
NCA has come a long way today, he said, adding that cricket is instead making a difference with players from various parts of the state benefiting from the development plan.
Metha informed that a player representing Nagaland in Ranji Trophy is paid INR 1.6 lakh per match and INR 35,000 per day. Under BCCI programme, cricketers who represent Nagaland in a full season consistently would walk home with about INR 15 lakh which is directly deposited in the bank account by the BCCI, he added.
The NCA is getting a grant of close to INR 10 crore per annum, out of which INR 9 crore is the actual grant after GST, he informed, adding that 4.5 crore goes directly to the accounts of the players and support staff per season which is about six months.
Cricketers and young people from Nagaland are part of this journey, he said. The doors are open if one is willing to put in the work; best coaches and best support staff are brought in to their door step to train the cricketers, he added.
He told young cricketers from the state there is no reason why they can’t reach the top if they put in the hard work, run the extra mile and sweat the extra bucket.
The NCA is Nagaland’s property; Every Naga citizen across the 16,700 square kilometres is the stalkholder of the association and its door is open for all who wants to contribute and make a difference, he said.
Let us unite and work together as one force. Let us persuade excellence with the Olympic motto ‘Citius, Altius, Fortius’ (Faster, Higher, Stronger), he added.
NCA President Kechangulie Rio delivered the welcome address at the event, which was attended by members of NECDC from Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Sikkim, Mizoram and Meghalaya. The chairman of Sovima village Council, Sebastian Zumvü, also spoke on the occasion.