DADA CHECKS
   Date :16-Oct-2019

 
IN MIDWAY in his last Test in 2008, skipper MS Dhoni asked the retiring Sourav Ganguly to don the captain’s hat. A perplexed Dada, an astute skipper himself, took over, marshalled the bowlers for a few overs before handing it back to Dhoni. A déjà vu is in the offing for Ganguly as he occupies the most prestigious seat of BCCI President in a few days from now. In a late night drama, he was handed over the mantle by the ‘old guards’ in the Board, something that will stick to Ganguly’s short tenure till September 2020. As he begins a new innings, Ganguly has to start afresh on a totally different wicket where circumstances rule more than conditions and pressure mounts more than the bouncers he faced as a batsman. Ganguly has talked of bringing a change in BCCI’s image. For that to happen, Ganguly the skipper has to come out, with ‘an eye for an eye’ policy and with a winner’s mentality. It is imperative to be ruthless in the top seat, for, shrewdness assumes a new definition while dealing with ‘marauders in the system’. Wishing the best, Dada!
 
VALUED HERITAGE
 
IT MUST be a feeling of great honour for those who have painstakingly restored the Victorian era Flora Fountain in Mumbai after being awarded the UNESCO conservation award. The commercial capital of the country is blessed with several such architectural marvels belonging to the Victorian era. But not all of them could be claimed to be in good shape. That is an irony. The whole country is bestowed with such beautiful historical monuments. But many of them have fallen on bad days because of neglect both by the authorities who matter in this respect and people of the places where these iconic monuments are located. They have been misused and disused by the people themselves. In fact these places are of great historical value and have huge tourism potential. But what is necessary is their proper upkeep which receives very little value in our country. In fact it should be everybody’s responsibility to preserve and conserve these places which are symbols of great warriors and leaders of yesteryears who enriched our culture.