Jammu, Dec 2 (IANS) Following the initiative of the Table Tennis Federation of India, the two units of West Bengal, namely West Bengal Table Tennis Association and North Bengal Table Tennis Association, have merged together to form a single unit under the new name of Bengal State Table Tennis Association (BSTTA).

The federation, which directed the merger, considered their request and acceded to it by allowing players of the erstwhile units the luxury of pitting two teams - Bengal A and Bengal B - in all ranking and national championships because of the sheer volume of players available in the state. This is the system followed in the case of Maharashtra.

As a result, in the ongoing Junior and Youth Nationals two teams along the suggested lines are competing for the first time.

During the inauguration of the championships here this morning, the Bengal teams marched under one banner, culminating in a fruitful unification.

--IANS dm/bbh