Ahmedabad, Nov 19 (IANS): Dhanraj Parimal Nathwani was unanimously elected as the President of Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA) on Saturday.

Nathwani, who had held the post of vice-president, will take over the position left vacant by Amit shah, who took over the charge prior from then Chief Minister Narendra Modi as the GCA President.

GCA also announced that Hemantbhai Contractor will be the vice-president, Anilbhai Patel will be the secretary, Mayurbhai Patel will be the joint-secretary and Bharat Zaveri will be the treasurer with immediate effect.

Commenting on his appointment, Nathwani said, "I consider it a great honour to be appointed as President of GCA. I am thankful to our former presidents, Amit Shah and Jay Shah and members of the association for having given me the opportunity to serve the noble game of cricket in Gujarat. I am determined to accelerate their vision, and that of our former President and Hon'ble Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, of spreading the sport into remote areas of Gujarat and work towards developing infrastructure and creating opportunities for talented boys and girls at the grassroots level."

An enthusiastic cricket and sports lover, Nathwani played a key role in the development of the Narendra Modi Cricket Stadium, Ahmedabad, the largest of its kind in the world, which is spread across 63 acres and can seat more than 1.3 lakh fans.

An alumnus of the Regent's Business School in London, where he studied International Business, Nathwani is an MBA with a specialisation in corporate law and public relations management from the National Institute of Management.

Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA) is the governing body for the development and organisation of cricket in the state of Gujarat with 10 districts and a union territory under its wing which comprises of Ahmedabad, Kheda, Anand, Bharuch, Surat, Valsad (Bulsar), Gandhinagar, Banaskantha, Panchmahals, Daman and Dadra Nagar Haveli. GCA is a permanent member of the BCCI.