Kolkata: The oldest football tournament in Asia – Durand Cup – will host its 135th edition when Mohun Bagan Super Giant and East Bengal FC take the field at the Salt Lake Stadium in the first derby of the season on Saturday.However, in the 134 years of the tournament’s existence, Indian women’s football has grown by leaps and bounds, and at the culmination of the Durand Cup Trophy Tour in the city on Wednesday, the organizers of the prestigious competition – the Indian Armed Forces – revealed their enthusiasm to include a women’s competition in the coming years.At the ceremonial function and press conference at AOI Vijay Durg, where the three iconic trophies of the tournament were presented, Major General Dinesh Kumar Singh, vice-chairman of the Durand Cup Organizing Committee, said that they were mulling the introduction of a women’s tournament alongside the men’s event in the near future.“Why leave the girls behind?” That was the question on their minds six months ago when they began preparations for the upcoming season, Singh said.“So, this is something we have already thought about. The problem is how many places and what kind of facilities (will be available) for it. So probably in the next edition we can have a truncated or smaller version of the girls’ event,” he added.To add to the expectations, a special women’s exhibition match was jointly organized by the Indian Armed Forces and the Manipur government at the SAI Ground in Takiel, Imphal, in the run-up to the main competition.This time, the tournament will see 24 men’s teams compete across five venues, with Ranchi as the newest addition and the Assam teams returning to Guwahati after two editions in Kokrajhar.“We have seen enthusiasm among people in Kokrajhar. But the state government wanted to go back to Guwahati to facilitate organization,” said Lt. Gen. Gambhir Singh, Chief of Staff, Headquarters Eastern Command, and Chairman of the Organizing Committee.Among the dignitaries at the event was the chief guest Dr. Indranil Khan, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for the Departments of Youth Services and Sports and Consumer Affairs in the government of West Bengal.“During the recent FIFA World Cupwe have all the support clubs of the world. Now is the time to unite behind Indian football and our own footballers,” said Khan.Meanwhile, Ranchi will host its first Durand Cup match on Sunday, when Jamshedpur FC will take on Defenders FC at the Birsa Munda Stadium. Defending champions Northeast United FC will begin their title defense against Bodoland FC at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati on August 1. The other cities hosting the first competition are the northeastern cities of Shillong and Imphal.