The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) along with its affiliated state associations on Saturday decided to donate Rs 51 crore to the Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund towards strengthening the nation’s disaster management capacities and encourage research to combat Covid-19 and protect Indian citizens.

BCCI president Sourav Ganguly and secretary Jay Shah said in a media release that it “will continue to monitor and work closely with the government of India, state governments and other state regulatory bodies and are committed to providing support to the state machinery in the face of adversity.”

Bagan, EB contribute

Mohun Bagan have announced a donation of Rs 20 lakh towards the West Bengal State Emergency Relief Fund to help medical workers and hospitals in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

“These are challenging times for everyone and none should be left behind. Our contribution is just a start. We hope that others also join in supporting more families in need. Together we can overcome this crisis,” Mohun Bagan general secretary Srinjoy Bose said in a statement on the club’s website.

East Bengal said they would also donate Rs 30-40 lakh next week.

Former India batsman Suresh Raina donated Rs 52 lakh. State MLA and former India footballer Dipendu Biswas also donated a month’s salary to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund.

Major challenge

The Tokyo 2020 Olympics organising committee president, Yoshiro Mori, has told international federations that deciding who foots the bill for postponing the Games to 2021 will be a “major challenge”, an Olympic news website reported on Saturday.

Barca gesture

Barcelona has delivered 30,000 masks to the Catalonia government, the club said on Saturday.