Chennai, May 27 (IANS): In a sudden and surprising development for the chess players and a set back for the All India Chess Federation (AICF), the global chess body FIDE on Monday announced the restoration of Elo ratings of dozens of Indian players in their records.

"Nearly a decade ago, FIDE, at the behest of the All India Chess Federation (AICF), removed the Elo ratings of dozens of players and expunged their names from the records. Today we are delighted to welcome back all those players with immediate effect," Arkady Dvorkovich, President said in a statement.

"This is a big news not only for affected players but for all the Indian chess players. It is a big slap on the face of AICF and its officials who had destroyed the chess careers of many players," Gurpreet Pal Singh one of the players banned by AICF years ago told IANS.

"The AICF officials who were instrumental in banning us and removing our Elo ratings and who still continue in AICF should immediately resign owing moral responsibility for spoiling the sporting future of dozens of players," Karun Dugal, another banned player, told IANS.

However, the FIDE statement is silent on the procedure to be followed for reinduction by the dozens of players who were banned by the AICF.