3 iconic city football clubs to receive Banga Bibhushan

Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will confer Banga Bibhushan 2022 awards to three premier clubs from Bengal — Mohun Bagan, East Bengal and Mohammedan Sporting Club on July 25.

Banerjee has sent letters to these club authorities expressing her desire to honour them and have sought their presence at the programme that will be held at Nazrul Manch.

"An emotion is associated with the game of football and these three clubs are milestones in the social history of Bengal. So, the Chief Minister wants to confer the prestigious award on them," a senior Nabanna official said.

Mohun Bagan is the national club of India which defeated Eastern Yorks – a military football team to lift the IFA Shield in 1911. It opened a new chapter in the history of football and the nationalist movement in India.

East Bengal Club, which is also century old, became the nerve centre of the refugees who had come and settled in Kolkata and its neighbourhood after the Partition in 1947.

Mohammedan Sporting is also associated with city's football league for generations.

Usually, Banga Bibhushan awards are conferred upon individuals for their excellence in respective fields. This is for the first time when such an award will be handed over to three prestigious clubs.

Banerjee will also confer Banga Bhushan and Mahanayak Samman on that day.

Rabilal Tudu will receive the Banga Bhushan award for his contribution to Santhali literature and culture.