The Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) secretary Aditya Verma welcomed the recommendations of Supreme Court-appointed committee, headed by Justice RM Lodha, and hoped the BCCI would implement them immediately for the betterment of cricket in the region that has been ignored for last 15 years.

Bihar had lost its full membership and voting rights after the state was divided into Bihar and Jharkhand in 2000.

“The Lodha Committee has recognised the need for regulating the cricketing activities in the state of Bihar. The recommendations are welcome and encouraging for the young cricketers. For the past 15 years, the only victim of the policy of the BCCI towards Bihar has been the game of cricket. Bihar is one of the most populous states in the country, and due to the discriminatory policies of the BCCI towards Bihar, a full generation of players have had to suffer,” Verma said in a statement on Wednesday.

“Although, there are 30 members with full voting rights, the states of Maharashtra has four full members, Gujarat has three full members each, and that of West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh have two each, the state of Bihar has no membership.

“This disparity makes cricket unequal for different states. In fact, the state of Bihar, one of the oldest units of the BCCI since 1935, lost its voting rights and Full Membership after the bifurcation of the state of Bihar into Bihar and Jharkhand in 2000.”

Verma said the lack of funding of BCCI has affected the development of cricket in the region.

“Bihar does not even have a team participating in any first-class tournament conducted by the BCCI, including the Ranji Trophy. Further, no financial aid is given to Bihar for developing its cricketing activities,” he said.

“It is of utmost urgency that the BCCI immediately implement this recommendation of the Lodha Committee and recognise the Cricket Association of Bihar, so that further losses are not caused to the cricketers of the state.”