Tollygunge Club has offered permanent members who do not use “club facilities” a chance to relinquish their memberships for 50 per cent of the entrance fee that the club charges from new members.
Even if they do not use any of the facilities, the dormant members still have to pay a minimum monthly, quarterly or annual subscription.
The 129-year-old institution, like multiple other legacy clubs in the city, is grappling with the problem of balancing the ever-increasing demand for memberships and the number of members they can accommodate.
An official of the club said the current entrance fee is around Rs 8 lakh. “The plan is to offer a sum of Rs 4 lakh to a person who gives up the membership,” he said.
A letter sent by the club’s chief executive officer to the members on February 17 says the club “recognizes that there is a segment of members, who, for various reasons, make infrequent or no use of the club facilities, despite holding permanent membership. During periods of non-utilization, these members are still obligated to meet minimum billings and monthly subscriptions….”
The letter then cites a provision in the Articles of Association of the club to offer a solution.
“The committee may, at its discretion, offer a scheme to permanent resident members to relinquish their permanent membership on payment to the member of a sum not exceeding 50 per cent of the existing entrance fee,” it says.
The letter iterates that “participation in this scheme is entirely voluntary” and the decision to “retain or relinquish permanent membership” is a matter of “personal choice”.
The opportunity will be open from March 1 to April 30, the letter says.
Club president Sujoy Banerjee told Metro: “One of our biggest challenges is to balance the ever-increasing demand for membership and our limited capacity to take permanent members as per the terms of our Articles of Association. This voluntary relinquishing of membership scheme is an initiative towards that end.”
“It is aimed at the permanent resident members who for various reasons make little or no use of the club facilities, yet have to bear the financial commitments such as monthly subscriptions and minimum billings,” he said.
Some of these members have shifted base outside the city, some are too old to visit the club while their younger generations have moved out of Calcutta, said club sources.
Old-timers said a similar initiative did not generate a significant response several years ago.
A member of the Tollygunge Club committee said the permanent resident members total around 1,700 and the ceiling is 2,000. “So, the headroom is tight,” he said.
The high demand for new memberships has led to a huge backlog. “We are now processing permanent membership applications filed in 2009-10,” the member said.
The committee is looking at “three to four per cent” of the permanent resident members who are “dormant”.
The minimum subscription for a permanent member is Rs 14,400 a year, which translates to Rs 1,200 per month.
If the initiative is successful, it could be a model for other legacy clubs in the city.
“We are mulling a similar drive. It will be discussed in the next annual general meeting,” said Abhijit Ghosh, president of Calcutta Club.
The 117-year-old club has around 3,800 permanent members. The ceiling is 4,000, said a club official.
The backlog of pending membership applications at Calcutta Club is between four and five years, he said.
The Calcutta Cricket and Football Club, founded in 1792, has not taken in new permanent members in the past “four to five years”.
“We cannot do anything in this financial year. Our next AGM is due in July. We will have to take feedback from the members before taking any step. Such a proposal might be taken up in the meeting but only after taking everyone on board,” said Subrata Das, president of the CC&FC.
Calcutta Swimming Club on Strand Road had launched a similar initiative a decade ago. The offer was withdrawn a couple of years ago.
“We paid an ad hoc amount to members who gave up their memberships. Many people accepted the offer,” said Gopal Das Binnany, a former president of the club.