by Michael Rodrigues,Team Mangalorean Udupi

Manipal: Udupi District Cricket Association (UDCA) will be inaugurated on 22 July 2012 at 6:00 pm by Prof. Rathnakar Shetty, Administrative officer of BCCI. And, SMH Kirmani, Director Karnataka Cricket Academy and a former test player will induct the newly formed Association Members and Executive Committee Members said, Dr. H S Ballal Honorary president of UDCA.  He was speaking with media persons on Friday July 20, 2012 at Manipal University building auditorium

 Dakshina Kannada comprising of Mangalore and Udupi was divided into two revenue districts on August 25, 1997. Since then all the government offices and other organizations have separated. Sports like volleyball, kabaddi, tennis, badminton, athletics too have separate associations and have contributed talented sportsmen to State and National teams. However, the Udupi District Cricket Association since beginning has been participating with Mangalore Zone for all cricket related activities. Of the three centres for cricket in the erstwhile Dakshina Kannada, two are in Udupi District -Udupi and other Kundapur. These two centres have contributed a lot to cricket in the Mangalore Zone.

Now, the district has decided to go on its own and considering the large number of cricket activities in the district like coaching camps, zonal and inter- zonal invitation matches, umpires coaching and training camps, Under -14, Under -16, Under-19, Under- 25 to name some, the UDCA feels it is time to have an independent body.

 Infrastructure-wise too, the district has sufficient to carry on the activities without depending on others. Various cricket personalities for Karnataka and other states have visited and witnessed the events organized by UDCA and have appreciated the infrastructure and facilities available in Udupi.

 It was therefore decided by the office bearers of the district association to seek direct affiliation with the Karnataka State Cricket Association and provide better cricketing opportunities to the youngsters of the district. As we have good infrastructure facilities like hostel and indoor net practice facilities and overall support from sponsors and also a university like Manipal University, the scope to improve the lot for cricketers is plenty. Motivated by these facilities and factors, the UDCA has been carrying out quite a bit of cricket activities.

 UDCA is presently a registered body under the society act Government of Karnataka and want to activate as an official cricket body under the affiliation of Karnataka State Cricket Association Bangalore. In order to form Udupi District Cricket Association ,a meeting of cricket lovers was held on November 16, 2011 at Manipal University  under the leadership of Dr. H S Ballal, Pro-Chancellor of Manipal University. Thirty-five cricket fans of Udupi District attended the discussion and gave some valuable suggestion and comments in organizing a strong and powerful cricket association at Udupi District.

 Dr. K Krishna Prasad was unanimously nominated to take the lead and form a team of workers to promote cricket in the district. Some cricketers who were already involved in cricketing activities joined hands to draft bylaws and study the feasibility of Udupi separating from the Mangalore zone. That is how Udupi District Cricket Association was formed, he said

President of UDCA Dr. Krishna Prasad, Secretary  Prabhakar Shetty , Kemapraj, Vinod Nayak and others were present in the press meet
 
Udupi District Cricket Association
 
The newly formed Association Members and Executive Committee Members are:
 
Dr. H S Ballal - Honorary President
Dr. Krishna Prasad - President
Prabhakar Shetty   - Secretary  

Press Release

Dr Kemparaj for pre-Olympic Congress
 
Manipal: Dr Kemparaj H.B. Director Department of Physical Education, MIT, Manipal University will present a paper titled, “Promoting Holistic Health Through Effective Sports Management” at the 2012 Pre-Olympic Congress on Sports Science and Computer Science in sports to be held at ACC Liverpool, UK on July 24 and 25, 2012.

Dr Kemparaj will be present to watch the opening ceremony and some of the events during the Olympics during his week-long stay.