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Saaransh Tandon has been unanimously elected as the new President of the UT Cricket Association (UTCA) for a three-year term (2025–26, 2026–27 and 2027–28) during the 45th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the association held at Hotel Hyatt Regency, Chandigarh on Sunday. Saaransh Tandon had filed his nomination for the post of President along with other candidates on October 19 against which no other nominations were received. Election Observer Maninder Singh Bains (IAS) announced the new five-member executive team comprising Hari Singh Khurana (Secretary), Sanjay Daniel Banerjee (Vice President), Rahul Talwar (Joint Secretary) and Alok Krishan (Treasurer). Meanwhile, Vinay Grover was elected unopposed as Apex Council Member while Pawan Kumar Mutneja and Ravinder Singh were chosen for the Governor Council (CPL) positions. Prof (Dr.) Neeru Malik, Ravi Kant Sharma and Abhimanyu G have been entrusted with the responsibility of overseeing the Women’s Premier League. Former Ranji player Rakesh Jolly appointed as the Chairman of the Cricket Advisory Committee while Justice Raj Mohan Singh has been appointed as Ombudsman and Mehan Associates will serve as the auditors. Earlier, in his address outgoing President Sanjay Tandon who is now assigned with WPL’s Governing Council member by BCCI reflected on the milestones achieved during his tenure and outlined several initiatives that have laid a strong foundation for the future of cricket in Chandigarh. Sanjay Tandon emphasised UTCA’s focus on empowering women’s cricket, including the formation of a Women’s Premier League (WPL) Governing Council. He informed that BCCI has approved in principal grant of Rs 20 crore for setting up a state-of-the-art indoor cricket facility in Chandigarh to help cricketing actions round the year. He also highlighted UTCA’s efforts in strengthening Anti-Corruption Units to promote clean cricket, launching player engagement and orientation programmes and supporting Divyang (differently-abled) cricket, demonstrating the association’s holistic and inclusive approach. Tandon informed that UTCA has entered into an agreement with Panjab University to utilise its facilities for upcoming BCCI tournaments. Acknowledging UTCA’s steady growth, the BCCI granted cricketing equipment worth Rs 3 crore previously for recognising Chandigarh’s impressive progress under his leadership. Reflecting on grassroots initiatives, Tandon cited the success of ‘Gully Cricket,’ as a model programme for promoting cricket at the community level while curbing drug abuse through youth engagement. He also highlighted with pride that UTCA became the eighth state association in India (out of 36) to introduce its own franchise-based league for creating wider avenues for emerging cricketers and establishing Chandigarh as a growing hub of competitive cricket. Outgoing UTCA Secretary Devinder Sharma presented the annual report highlighting key achievements. Player registrations rose from 1,400 (2023–24) to 2,820 (2024–25), settling at 2,419 (2025–26) and reflected Chandigarh’s growing cricket base. UTCA hosted 59 BCCI matches including the Ranji Trophy. The Senior Men’s team entered the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy knockouts, while the Ranji side secured four wins in seven matches, the most in its group. Eight players attended NCA camps with Kashvee Gautam, Sandeep Sharma, Raj Angad Bawa and Nikhil Kumar earning national honours—two in IPL, one in WPL, and one in the India U-19 Asia Cup. Expressing gratitude to the members for their trust, new President Saaransh Tandon said his focus will be on building upon the strong foundation laid by his predecessors. He emphasized a renewed commitment to grassroots development, player welfare and modern training facilities along with ensuring transparent governance. He added that UTCA will continue to work closely with the BCCI to fast-track the development of cricket in Chandigarh. Earlier, Treasurer Alok Krishan presented the audited accounts. Lastly, the Saaransh Tandon also invited suggestions from the members to make UTCA more effective.
