The Indian Cricket Board, BCCI, on Monday laid the foundation stone for indoor cricket training academies in six North-Eastern States, with the sole emphasis on helping budding cricketers from the region.
The indoor cricket academies will serve players from Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, and Sikkim; and will be based in Shillong, Itanagar, Kohima, Aizawl, Imphal, and Gangtok.
"Honoured to have laid the foundation stone for BCCI's upcoming state-of-the-art indoor training facilities in the North-East," Shah wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Earlier, cricketers from these States were required to travel to centres in Kolkata, Bengaluru, Chennai, Mumbai, or Ahmedabad for training during the monsoon season.
The BCCI had also created North-East Cricket Development Committee, which is being headed by Avishek Dalmiya, the President of the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB).
"Our cricketers from six States — Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, and Sikkim — will soon benefit from world-class indoor nets, indoor swimming pools and fitness centres for year-round training options," Shah wrote.
Meanwhile, the BCCI is already in the process of developing a new National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru with expanded area and facilities.