Calcutta, Dec. 4 :    Calcutta, Dec. 4:  Fresh horses for the courses; gala gift hampers and lucky prizes; special incentives for owners and trainers; brand new super-speed betting terminals... This winter, it's fun to be back at the races and the turnstiles are rolling fast. The Royal Calcutta Turf Club (RCTC) has unveiled a whole new value-added packaging plan to shore up interest in the sport and to bring the family crowd back to the races. For once, wives aren't cribbing about horse-crazy husbands, say turf club officials. They are, in fact, crowding the course - for if they are lucky, they can return home with a colour television or an automatic washing machine. Tying up with a white-goods major for lucky draws on entry tickets for gift hampers is just one among the many attractions the authorities have lined up this season. 'Even though off-course betting has shown a rise in recent years, interest in live racing in Calcutta, our core product, has dwindled. We have been left behind by other centres,' admits RCTC CEO and secretary Vineet Verma. As a first step towards a turf turnaround, the club formed an expert panel to revive 'direct buying' of horses. 'We went out with money in our pockets, procured a dozen ready-to-race horses and entered them in the breeze-up sale this October,' says Verma. All these race horses have been sold at the auction. Buoyed by this success, RCTC has decided to buy 12 to 15 two-year-old horses, the 'seed capital for any centre'. Making the races a family day out heads the list of things to do. The move to pick '10 big race days' from the national calendar for its lucky draw contest with Sony has already hit its stride. Now, club officials are ready to petition the government to allow children below 18 into the course. Maharashtra has already opened the stalls for children, with a 'no-betting stricture', and if the Bengal government follows suit, the family scene at the Calcutta course could hit a canter. With members' comfort a must, the club has kicked off a seven-year plan for infrastructure upgradation. 'To bring back people to the races, we are working on various areas, like more user-friendly members' boxes, personalised service and, of course, more consumer-oriented schemes to attract the family crowd,' says Verma. The turf club is also offering a number of incentives to encourage owners. An appearance money of Rs 1,000 every time a horse races pays for part of the feed. For trainers, a special incentive of Rs 10,000 is up for grabs for every new horse with an owner introduced to the turf club. This has increased the in-station field by 'more than 50'. Stake money has been hiked by 20 per cent on an average and every first-time race horse is being provided with free transportation. Besides, 100 new super-speed betting terminals have been installed to augment turnover. The results are already showing. After only five race days into the winter season, there has been a 14 per cent increase on the totalisator, the club's official betting machinery. An 18 per cent rise in turnover with licensed bookmakers and a 10 per cent swell in attendance point to the beginning of a grand revival. 'The incentives to attract more race-goers and to have larger fields have been received very well. On its debut, the scheme to win prizes upon betting at the totalisator saw the tote collection soar,' observes B.S. Bala, president, Calcutta Racehorse Owners' Society.