Not running away from reforms, says Anurag Thakur

Newly-elected president Anurag Thakur on Sunday said that the Board of Cricket for Cricket in India had begun the “reform process long back” and was looking into the “practical side of the Supreme Court-appointed Lodha Committee’s recommendations”.

Thakur, 41, took guard with Ajay Shirke chosen as secretary here on Sunday. The second youngest to the throne after Fateh Singh Gaekwad, who took over at the age of 33 in 1963, Thakur said the BCCI was not “running away from the Lodha recommendations”.

“It can be a challenge for you, but for me, it is an opportunity,” Thakur told a packed press conference here. “We are not running away from the Lodha recommendations. I started reforms 15 months back with the late Jagmohan Dalmiya and then, Shashank Manohar. I have the guidance of both.

“The matter is now with the court and I am sure they will take the right decision. No institution is 100 per cent perfect. When I started as an administrator (in Himachal Pradesh), I just had an office and a typewriter and look now, we have built one of the beautiful stadiums in Dharamshala,” said Thakur at the BCCI headquarters.

Manohar stepped down as the BCCI head recently to be elected as the independent chairman of the international body. Thakur, who served office earlier as the secretary, got the signature of all six East Zone units in his presidential nomination on Saturday to become the unanimous choice for the top post.

The Indian board is under immense pressure to bring in the Lodha Committee-suggested reforms and built a clean image, and Thakur will have a lot to do in the coming months.

Thakur, also a BJP MP, followed in Raj Singh Dungarpur’s footsteps. He is the second first-class cricketer to become the board president; he led Himachal Pradesh against Jammu and Kashmir in 2000-01 season as a right-handed batsman and off-spinner.

‘Revenue from IPL — why push it back ’ Manohar declared his reservations regarding banning of advertisements between overs, which would reduce board revenue. Thakur seconded him stressing on the importance of the Indian Premier League as a source of revenue.

“Money to former cricketers, monthly or one-time, is dependent on the revenues earned. We pay our employees, state associations through advertisements. One needs to understand what the IPL brings to the country. It is a win-win situation. Both the state and the centre gain out of it, so why are we pushing it

“The IPL is successful because of Indians, don’t force us to take it outside; that will be a loss for all,” he said.

The board is planning to go green in terms of stadiums and the infrastructure.

“There will be sewage treatment, rain-water harvesting. All this will be delivered within one year,” Thakur announced.

The board has marked Rs 100 crore for the “green” initiative.