Can't remain administrator forever: Sourav Ganguly
Kolkata, Oct 13: Amid the chatter around his imminent departure from the BCCI, board president Sourav Ganguly on Thursday said he "can't be an administrator forever".
The former India captain is set to be replaced as board president by 1983 World Cup winning-team member Roger Binny in the apex body's upcoming AGM (Annual general Meeting).
"You can't play forever. You can't be an administrator forever, but it's been fun doing both and seeing both sides of the coin. I will go for bigger things in future," Ganguly said on the sidelines of an event related to Bandhan bank.
"I was a cricketer's administrator. Yes you had to make decisions because there's so much cricket happening, there's so much money around. There's women's cricket, there's domestic cricket. Yes you had to take calls at times as an individual," he added.
Ganguly was keen to continue as the BCCI chief, but things did not pan out that way, even as Jay Shah is set to continue as the secretary.
Ganguly first got into cricket administration as a secretary under Jagmohan Dalmiya at the Cricket Association of bengal (CAB), before heading the state body after the veteran's death in September 2015.
Speaking of achieving success, the former skipper cited the example of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
"Life, achievements and progresses are about small goals, you don't become a Sachin Tendulkar, or an Ambani or Narendra Modi in one day.
"You have to spend your life, time, days, weeks, months working towards it. that's the key to success. If you decide that this is my job, this is my life, give everything you have for the rest of your life to be the best."
Ganguly also spoke about the high points of his tenure as BCCI president.
"I think I thoroughly loved it. If you see the last three years, so many good things have happened. IPL during COVID, such difficult times for all of us in the country. We didn't know how to deal with it. The broadcast rights which went to an all time high.
"The Under-19 winning the World Cup. I wish the women won the Commonwealth Games gold, they were in a position to beat Australia. Senior team winning in Australia. Those were great moments as an administrator. But they returned with a silver which was still first.
"I hope they do well in Australia because it's a tremendous cricket team. There's so much talent, so much power, class in the side," he said, wishing Team India luck for the upcoming T20 World Cup.
"You expect them to win all the time. But the challenge of being a player was completely different. So you can't compare both."
Ganguly said the challenges as a cricketer were more than being an administrator.
"I did eight years' of administration. I was president of the Cricket Association of Bengal, then became president of the BCCI, all these have tenures and you have to go after finishing it.
"But I feel the challenge as a cricketer was a lot more. When you do backroom work, sitting on tables and running the game, you have time to correct things.
"But if you nicked a delivery from Glenn McGrath on the first morning of a Test, you are out, you didn't have the time to correct it -- I think that's the major difference.
"But when you do administration you realise that you contribute so much, you could make things better for a cricketer and me being a player who played for a long period of time, I understood that," he signed off.
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Kerala CM slams Karnataka demolitions, calls it 'bulldozer justice'
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Friday strongly criticised the reported demolition of Muslim residential areas in Karnataka's capital, calling the action shocking and painful.
In a Facebook post, Vijayan referred to the reported bulldozing of Fakir Colony and Waseem Layout, where Muslim families had been living for many years.
He said the incident reflected a form of minority-targeting politics seen earlier in North India and warned that such practices were now spreading to the South.
The chief minister alleged that entire families were forced out of their homes in harsh winter conditions and pushed onto the streets, leaving them with no choice but to flee.
Vijayan expressed surprise that what he described as "bulldozer justice" was carried out under a Congress-led government in Karnataka.
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He questioned how such forced evictions could be justified by a party that claims to stand for social justice.
He added that governments should take responsibility for protecting the poor, ensuring housing, and preventing people from being driven out of their homes through the use of force.
According to media reports, a demolition drive in Kogilu village at Yelahanka last week pulled down more than 200 houses in Waseem Layout and Fakir Colony.
The operation was reportedly carried out by Bengaluru Solid Waste Management Limited. Reports said the houses were removed to clear what were described as encroachments on land marked for a proposed waste processing unit.
