Dalmiya appeals not to malign Eden Gardens after washout

Kolkata, Feb 13 (UNI) Former CAB president Jagmohan Dalmiya today appealed to all not to malign the Eden Gardens and said the state association had to sacrifice him to get its due money.

'' Please don't malign Eden Gardens, '' was Mr Dalmiya's fervent plea to the media today, reacting to the various reports and allegations that are being made after the first-ever washout of an One-Day International at the historic venue.

On Thursday, the first one-dayer between India and Sri Lanka could not take place after rain lashed the stadium for nearly 40 minutes.

Fingers were pointed at the drainage system and the Cricket Association of Bengal president Prasun Mukherjee came out with a statement that the facilities were not all in order.

But today, Mr Dalmiya claimed that the drainage system at Eden Gardens was one of the best in the world.

'' The drains have to be cleaned before an international match so that the silt or sediments deposited inside is cleared. I don't know whether this was done. If it was done, there should have been no problem. I can challenge anyone to first clear the drains, then flood the ground and see whether the water stays or not, '' he said.

Mr Dalmiya also said the ground had become slushy as subsoil water had seeped through. '' This would have never happened had the drains been clear, '' he said.

Explaining with a diagram how the system worked and how the water was pumped out to the Eden Gardens lake, he said the system had been in place since 1979. It was installed by the PWD and the CAB after the floods in 1978 and it would last for hundred years and work properly if maintenance is done.

He said infrastructure-wise, Eden was one of the best in the world. This included the lights, drainage, sewerage, water supply and ground equipment.

Then he went on the topic of Rs 8.2 crore being paid to CAB on the evening when the match was washed out by BCCI President Sharad Pawar. ''BCCI has been cash rich since 1993-94 and is helping its affiliated units over the years. But prior to that Jagmohan Dalmiya and Samar Pal did not have to be sacrificed in order to get RS 8 crore from the parent body for infrastructure development,'' he said.

''Please first find out the truth before saying this ground does not have the facility. This plea can be used by the Board of Control for Cricket in India for not giving more matches to Eden, specially the 2011 final,'' he said.

Mr Mukherjee, the incumbent CAB Chief, when later asked whether the drains were cleaned before this match or not said: ''I take responsibility for the failure. I don't want to blame anyone, but I will hold an internal inquiry.'' UNI