Kohli set to receive Polly Umrigar award
New Delhi, June 7: Following his phenomenal showing in the past two seasons, India skipper Virat Kohli will be presented with the prestigious Polly Umrigar award for the best international cricketer (2016-17 and 2017-18) at the BCCI Awards to be held in Bengaluru on Tuesday, the board announced on Thursday.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Awards recognises and honours the top domestic and international cricketers across all age groups.
While Kohli gets top honours in the men's category, Harmanpreet Kaur and Smriti Mandhana are set to be maiden recipients of the award for best international cricketer (women) for the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons respectively.
To honour one of its finest administrators, the BCCI has rechristened four awards in memory of former board President Jagmohan Dalmiya.
The Jagmohan Dalmiya Trophy will be presented to the leading run-scorer and wicket-taker respectively in the U-16 Vijay Merchant Trophy and to the Best Junior and Senior Cricketer in women's cricket.
The BCCI has also raised the prize money for nine categories by Rs 1 lakh and the revised prize money is Rs 1.5 lakh.
The Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) has been adjudged the best State Association owing to their consistent performance in the BCCI domestic tournaments for the 2016-17 season while the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) wins it for the 2017-18 season.
Congratulating the winners, the Committee of Administrators (CoA) Chairman Vinod Rai said: "I congratulate all the winners of the BCCI Annual Awards. The last two years have been fabulous for Indian Cricket with both the men and women's teams doing very well. We are proud of their achievements and this is our small way of acknowledging their on-field efforts."
BCCI Acting President CK Khanna in his message said: "The BCCI Annual Awards is an occasion where former greats of the game, the present generation and the stars of tomorrow come under one roof. For BCCI, it is an opportunity to show its gratitude towards cricketers who enrich this game with their skills and hard work."
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Fire breaks out at Nature Bazaar in south Delhi, around 50 shops gutted
New Delhi (PTI): A major fire broke out at Nature Bazaar in south Delhi's Andheria Mor area on Sunday morning, gutting around 50 shops and triggering a massive firefighting operation, an official of the Delhi Fire Services (DFS) said.
According to the DFS, a call regarding the blaze was received at 7.37 am, following which 10 fire tenders were rushed to the spot to control the flames. No injury to anyone has been reported so far.
The fire erupted at the Nature Bazaar market located near Andheria Mor in the Lado Sarai area, where several temporary and semi-permanent shops selling handicrafts and other items are set up, he said.
Thick plumes of smoke were seen billowing from the market complex as the fire rapidly spread through multiple shops in the crowded marketplace.
Firefighters launched an extensive operation to contain the blaze and prevent it from spreading further.
Around 50 shops were gutted in the incident, causing heavy damage to goods and structures, the officer said.
Fire personnel were continuing efforts to completely douse the flames and carry out cooling operations in the area. The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained.
Police officers also reached the spot to assist in crowd management and facilitate firefighting operations.
