BCCI forms two-member committee to sort out contract issue

New Delhi, May 5 (UNI) The BCCI today formed a two-member committee comprising treasurer N Srinivasan and vice-president Shashank Manohar to sort out the contracts issue with cricketers after their return from the Bangladesh tour.

Board Secetary Niranjan Shah who was earlier stated to go to Kolkata to assess the players' reservations, if any, at the conditioning camp would not travel there, vice-president Rajiv Shukla told reporters after office bearer's meeting at BCCI president Sharad Pawar's residence here.

''The players have expressed their reservations over the contract issue and they want to discuss the matter with BCCI.

''The Board has accepted their point of view and formed a two-member committee to discuss the issue with the players after the Bangladesh tour and we have informed this decison to captain Rahul Dravid,'' Mr Rahiv Shukla told reporters.

He also rubbished reports about a rift between the players and the BCCI saying, ''They are the members of BCCI family so the question of disagreement or rift does not arise at all.'' The Board vice-president also said that the seven-member committee constituted at the last Working Committee Meeting in Mumbai to select a coach would meeet in the third week of this month to take a final call on the matter.

The Committee, headed by Mr Pawar, has Sunil Gavaskar, Venkataraghavan and Ravi Shastri among others.

''In the third week of May the search committee will be meeting to take a final decision on the matter of a permanent coach for Team India.'' The meeting also decided to end Women Cricket Association of India's (WCAI) control on women's cricket and in turn set up a seperate wing in each state to look after women's cricket under the sole supervision of BCCI.

''Following the ICC pattern, each state association has been asked to form a seperate wing to look after women's cricket under the BCCI constitution, Mr Shukla said, adding, ''The WCAI has no role to play in women's cricket in India.'' The hour-long meeting which was attended by BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah, vice-president Rajiv Shukla, joint-secratary M P Pandove and chief administrative officer (CAO) Ratnakar Shetty, also decided to clear the players oustanding payments after the forthcoming Bangladesh tour.

Apart from them, also present in the meeting were WCAI secretary, Subhangi Kulkarni and Maharashtra Cricket Association president, Ajay Shirke.

UNI