Hyderabad, January 04: The worst fears have come true.
The historic Moin-ud-Dowlah trophy, which was donated by Nawab Moin-ud-Dowlah in 1931, is no more a gold cup. This was confirmed by the National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI)- CSIR which conducted an Electron Probe Micro Analyser (EPMA) evaluation of the cup at the request of the Hyderabad Cricket Association.
The HCA action followed raising of doubts in September by treasurer Naresh Sharma and a few members including Devaraj about the genuineness of the cup when they had brought it from the locker of the State Bank of Hyderabad (SBH) for the tournament’s final.
Dr EVSSK Babu, scientist and in-charge and Dr PV Sunder Raju, scientist- EI of EPMA Laboratory, CSIR-NGRI, submitted their report after three days of extensive tests. “It is unfortunate it is not pure gold,’’ Dr Babu told Arshad Ayub, president of HCA. According to the report, the cup is an alloy of gold, silver and copper and is believed to be of less than 10-carat gold.
As per the European and American evaluation, it ceases to be gold if it is less than 10 carats.
The main objective of the study was to know precisely the gold content in the metallic portion of the cup and to note any evidences of tampering of the metal.
The scientists made rationale of sample collection by taking pieces from five different parts of the cup- the lid, main body, base and leaves with engraved winners names fixed on the wooden base.
To evaluate the samples, an Electron Probe Micro Analyser (EMPA Model: SX100 from M/s Cameca, France) was used. According to the scientists, EMPA is a non-destructive analytical technique which can determine the chemical compositions of an article. The impression the scientists got after conducting the tests was that average gold in the cup ranged from 37.98 to 36.04 wt., equivalent to 9.12 to 8.65 carats. The average gold content of the metal from different parts of the cup gave the impression that the same batch of alloy was used in its fabrication.
Based on the various contents, the gold cup could be valued at `90,000.
The last time the cup was valued was in 1988 when its market value was estimated at `2.77 lakh.
However, scientists were not able to ascertain the dates when the original cup was replaced by the fabricated one.
Reacting to the NGRI tests, Arshad Ayub said he would not like to comment till a thorough probe was made.
“It is very difficult to blame any particular individual since we don’t have any specified dates of the cup. We can’t take a conclusive report,’’ he said.
The Gold Cup, kept in the SBH locker, is brought with police escort on the day of the final. When it was brought for the latest edition of the tournament Naresh Sharma and a few others doubted the authenticity of the cup and sought its examination and evaluation. The CSIRNGRI report has come as a shock.
PR Man Singh, former secretary, has demanded a government probe into the tampering of the cup. “It is not the question of the value of the cup. It is the antiquity value of the cup that is important.
The state government should immediately probe its disappearance. In fact, I fear there are many such cups that have disappeared from the HCA office. It is a shame and disgrace,’’ Man Singh remarked.
–Agencies