Honourable Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually inaugurated six state-of-the-art Indoor Cricket Academies across North-East India on Tuesday as part of the BCCI’s attempt to expand the cricketing infrastructure across the country. PM Modi carried out the inauguration during a state function in Sikkim, Gangtok.
The academies are located in Rangpo (Sikkim), Doimukh (Arunachal Pradesh), Imphal (Manipur), Madankurklang (Meghalaya), Aizawl (Mizoram), and Dimapur (Nagaland). These academies will provide the platform needed to harness the talent blossoming in North East India.
The incumbent ICC chair, Jay Shah, was also present at the momentous occasion in Gangtok alongside several other BCCI officials.
Types of facilities available at these six academies
- Indoor practice pitches
- High-tech gymnasiums
- Temperature-controlled swimming pools
- Dedicated administrative and training blocks
BCCI thanks Jay Shah for conceptualisation
The BCCI President, Mithun Manhas, and Secretary, Devajit Saikia, expressed joy over the development and thanked Shah, who had conceptualised and spearheaded the project during his tenure as the honorary secretary of the board.
“We are grateful to the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi for inaugurating these facilities. This initiative reflects a clear intent to take cricket infrastructure to every region and build a stronger, more inclusive foundation for the game. It is also a significant step in ensuring that aspiring cricketers from the North-East have access to the same quality of facilities as anywhere else in the country,” said Manhas in a press release issued by the BCCI.
“This is a momentous occasion and a red-letter day for the entire North-East, and I thank the Honourable PM Shri Narendra Modi for gracing the event and inaugurating the facilities. I thank the ICC Chair Mr Jay Shah, for his vision and for initiating this important project back in 2022. This is a major boost, and the cricketers from the region will benefit immensely as training and preparations will continue throughout the year, giving players the consistency they need to develop their game. I am confident that this will pave the way for more players from the North-East to progress to the highest levels of the game,” said Saikia.
