Guwahati, Nov. 28: Preparations for the Assam basketball men?s team for the 33rd National Games is set to get a major boost with the recruitment of at least six international cagers by the NF Railway.

The railway has already issued letters to five India players for appointment to four Group C posts and a Group D one. Sources said another international player would be recruited shortly as a Group D staff. Those already appointed include Hanuman Singh, Virendra Singh, Vinod Kumar and Binod Choudhury ? the only international from Assam ? in Group C and Ajay Das in Group D.

The NF Railway?s move to recruit the players has earned praise from the Basketball Association of Assam (BAA) as a positive step to develop the sport in Assam. The association especially lauded NFR Sports Association?s basketball secretary P.K. Singh?s efforts. It was Singh whose personal initiative has brought the cagers to the state. In fact, the BAA also appealed to the railway authorities to recruit women cagers as well.

However, Singh said women cagers were not on the NF Railway?s priority list because of a ?bad precedence on an earlier occasion?. ?We had appointed nine women the last time we recruited cagers. But all of them gave up the game once they landed the job. They got married and no longer associate themselves with basketball activities, leave alone continue their game,? Singh said.