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Wah! Waugh!!

On Tuesday, Steve Waugh laid the foundation stone for Nivedita Bhavan, the branch of Calcutta-based charity Udayan that caters to the children of leprosy-affected parents.

Nivedita Bhavan, at Udayangram, to raise funds for which Steve Waugh is in Calcutta, will be for girl children.

Udayan is run by the Oxford mission, and already maintains a home for 250 male children.

The foundation stone was laid amid the chanting of Sanskrit hymbns and blowing of conch shells. The building, when completed, is slated to house around 150 female children of different ages.

Nivedita Bhavan will provide its inmates with boarding, lodging and tuitions, besides providing vocational training aimed at making them self sufficient, and able to take care of their own lives, in adulthood.

Waugh became interested when he, as part of the Australian team touring India earlier this year, accepted an invitation to visit a leper colony at Titagarh, near Udayan, and also checked out the work the charity was doing. Much moved, Waugh offered his services towards raising funds for a seperate home for girl children.

``I got an opportunity to see the boys and found them to be very happy," Waugh recalled. "I felt the need for a similar facility for girls and I thought I should do something for them. I'll be happier once the construction of the girls wing is completed,'' said the Aussie ace.

"All of us have a social responsibility," said Waugh, while laying the stone, "especially sportspersons, who are in the public eye and who have a following. We have got to involve those who have more money than what is needed to live, try and change things, reach out to those not as fortunate as we are."

Waugh gently hinted that India's own cricketing superstars should come forward to do their bit as well. The Aussie star said that already, Saurav Ganguly whose home is in Calcutta, and Rahul Dravid, had both expressed their willingness to spare their time and energies towards helping with the project.

"I find that scoring a century, or winning a cricket match, is satisfactory -- but I fid that doing my bit for the downtrodden is equally satisfying," Waugh told the assembled audience.

While laying the stone, Waugh said that he would be sponsoring two girl children at the charity, and that Australian off spinner Gavin Robertson had indicated his willingness to sponsor one, though the modalities were still being worked out. Robertson's two daughters will be pen friends with the inmates of Udayan, Waugh revealed.

A videotape of his activities in India would be aired on Australian televison, as part of Waugh's personal appeal to raise more funds.

Asked how he felt on visiting the leper colony at Titagarh, Waugh said, "The scenario there did not depress me, it is remarkable that the leprosy patients can still smile, that to me was an eye opener."

Asked how his wife and family reacted to his latest initiative, Waugh said, "My daughter, Rosalie, is very young, too young to understand, but my wife Lynette and everyone else has been very supportive. But I think they all have to actually see things, experience things, to understand better."

After the foundation stone-laying ceremony, Waugh spent the entire day at the charity, playing cricket with the boys, sitting through a cultural show put on by them with every indication of enjoyment, and proudly accepting a wood carving made by the inmates and presented to him as their special gift.

"Steve-saab is a fine man, he kept his word to us and came again," says 11 year old Jiten Patra, one of the inmates. "He played with us and patted us and took some of us on his lap and made us feel we were not unwanted."

``I am glad that Udayan has given me the chance to serve the kids and I shall try to do my best to better their life,'' he said.

Waugh, who has already collected $25,000 from friends in Australia for the charity, later moved on to a fund-raising charity dinner at a Calcutta hotel, and spoke of the need for corporate houses to come forward.

During the "Foster a Girl" charity dinner, Waugh auctioned a bat autographed by the legendary Sir Donald Bradman, and another one with the autographs of the entire Australian cricket team, besides other cricket memorabilia.

With Waugh driving the auction, the sale, held at the Taj Bengal, raised a remarkable Rs 1.1 million. The biggest bid naturally enough was for the Bradman bat, eventually bought by TIL chairman Avijit 'Bobby' Majumdar, for Rs 500,000.

A bat autographed by Waugh himself fetched Rs 5,000, while a bat signed by the entire Australian team that toured India earlier this year went for Rs 110,000.

A Kokkaburra cricket ball bearing the signatures of the Waugh brothers Steve and Mark, and ace spinner Shane Warne, fetched RS 50,000.

Among the corporate houses that attended and helped drive up the prices were Tata Tea, Cathay Pacific and Foster's.

"The auction was great, simply great," said the Aussie star. "Now I know my dream will come true."

Waugh has spoken to some of India cricketers to come forward to help the noble cause. ``I will be glad if some of the Indian cricketers can pool in their help,'' he said. ``Australian player Gavin Robertson has decided to adopt a child and wants his two daughters to be pen pals with the children here,'' the Aussie skipper revealed.

Moving on from the subject of his favourite charity, Waugh said that in his considered opinion, India now have a good chance of regaining the World Cup title they won in 1983.

"India today has a good mix of experience and of promising youngsters, they are going to be a strong contender for the title," Waugh said.

Asked about Australia's own chances, Waugh said his side seemed to be shaping well. "We have got fast bowlers Jason Gillespie and Glenn McGrath are back in the team, and Damien Fleming is also doing well."

Welcoming the ICC's moves to globalise the game, Waugh said that cricket's frontiers had to be extended in order for it to survive. "The coming ICC knock-out tournament in Dhaka, being billed as a mini-World Cup, could prove interesting in this context. And the ICC's efforts to have a world championship of Test cricket is also a positive move," the Aussie ODI skipper felt.

Waugh told the media here that he had accepted an offer from Ireland to coach, and play for, their national side. The offer was made by ICC development committee head Dr Ali Bacher, and Waugh will therefore head off to Ireland soon after his return to Australia.

Waugh is slated to return by the late evening flight, Wednesday. His wife and daughter will accompany him to Ireland, and the Aussie skipper indicated that he could be bringing them back to India when he returns to continue his mission at Udayan, this October.