Shillong, Nov. 20: Shillong will host an East Zone under-16 tournament for affiliated and associate member states from December 1 to 7 — the first tournament after the Meghalaya Cricket Association was accorded affiliation by the BCCI.

The participants are hosts Meghalaya, Nagaland and Sikkim in Group B and Arunachal Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Bihar and Manipur in Group A.

Though Shillong wished to host the entire tournament, a few matches were shifted to Guwahati because of the dearth of an additional cricket ground in the city.

Shillong will, however, host the final on December 7.

The tournament was instituted following a proposal moved by MCA general secretary Naba Bhattacharjee in a BCCI zonal committee meeting in Guwahati on September 20.

The MCA put forward a strong case before the BCCI officials, particularly for the allotment of matches in the Northeast where the cricket grounds are laid according to the standard specifications with turf wicket.

Such tournaments are envisaged in the BCCI new area development programme (NADP), under the supervision of the Assam Cricket Association in the Northeast.

An under-19 tournament will also be held in Chhattisgarh from December 13.