Sourav Ganguly to walk the ramp for cancer fundraising

Kolkata: Former India captain Sourav Ganguly will be seen walking the ramp to raise funds for the expansion plan of oncology care unit of the Tata Medical Centre.

Titled 'Dada'r Shongey Dil Sey Deejiye', the fund raising will take place at a city hotel on Friday. It will have a special cricket field theme with Ganguly at the centre of action. He will walk the ramp, besides auctioning his cricketing gear.

"He has given us his cricketing gear for the auction. We will set up a cricket field to go with the fashion show in a musical evening. We hope this to be a tremendous success," Tata Medical Centre's director, donor relationships Geeta Gopalakrishnan said.

Recalling the pain his former teammate Yuvraj Singh went through after playing an instrumental role in winning the ODI World Cup in 2011, Ganguly said, "I'm happy to see him recover and play the sport again which I thought was impossible at one stage.

"I have known him very closely for a long period of time. I've seen him go through the pain and suffering. I'm sure Tata Medical Centre makes such a difference to a lot of lives which get unnoticed."

Terming it a very serious cause, Ganguly thanked the participants in advance for their support for the cause.

"Your support will make a difference to the lives of so many. I'm sure with this foundation we in Kolkata will make a difference to the lives of so many children, men and women who suffer from the disease which at times gets incurable. I'm extremely proud that this centre has come up in the city. This is a city which needs such facilities," said Ganguly.

With the city's sporting icon batting for the cause, Tata Medical Centre director Dr Mammen Chandy said it would offer a ray of hope to the millions affected by cancer.

"With Dada's association we hope to generate funds that will add the required impetus to the expansion," said Dr Chandy.

In the phase 2 expansion expected by 2017, the hospital plans to add 250 more beds to the existing capacity of 183 to accommodate more patients and reduce waiting time.