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Calcutta: The fraternity paid homage to the Late Chandi Ganguly, former India captain Sourav’s father and a former secretary of the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB), on Thursday.
At the CAB-organised condolence meeting at the Eden, Chandi’s former associates fondly remembered him as a dedicated player and an able administrator.
Jagmohan Dalmiya, the CAB president, paid homage, as did Chitrak Mitra, on behalf of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Mitra is a BCCI vice-president from the East and was an associate of Chandi for decades. Also present were state sports minister Madan Mitra. On behalf of the Left Front, Robin Deb was present.
Among the other dignitaries present were PK Banerjee, Chuni Goswami and Prabir Mukherjee.
On the occasion, Dalmiya said: “There’s nothing new to say about such a personality… But I would like to point out that Chandi played a major role in uplifting the city’s image as a cricket centre and venue. He had an active role in convincing the BCCI to let Eden host the 1987 World Cup final and later the Hero Cup as well.”
For Goswami, Chandi was a friend who had dedicated 90 per cent of his life to cricket. “He was a friend and an able administrator… He was a satisfied man since he could mentor Sourav into becoming such a successful player and captain.”
Banerjee, on the other hand, said Chandi was a man of dignity. “His sense of dignity was what struck me… Sourav could become a great player and captain because of the foundation laid by his father.”
The others to speak on the occasion included sports minister Mitra, former Bengal captain Sambaran Banerjee, Saradindu Pal and Bhupendra Kumar Dey.
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