| CWG officials rule out England’s pullout |
New Delhi/London, Dec 30: Indian and English Commonwealth Games’ officials on Wednesday denied British media reports which said England could pull out of the 2010 Games in New Delhi over fears that their athletes would be targeted by Pakistani terrorists. Suresh Kalmadi, chairman of 2010 Organising Committee (OC), denied all such reports. “There is no truth in it. The British Commonwealth Games have also denied this report,” he said in New Delhi. |
Security for the Commonwealth Games will be one of the costliest, with equipment cost alone going over Rs 300 crore. The Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, which will host the opening and closing ceremonies, will have security gadgets worth Rs 51 crore.
At Rs 41 crore, the Indira Gandhi Stadium follows close behind, while the practice venues at the Delhi University have a much lesser security budget of Rs 1.5 crore.
The Electronics Corporation of India Limited (ECIL), set up by the Government of India in 1967, will provide CCTV cameras and other security gadgets for the venues.
H C Kalra, general manager of ECIL, told Newsline that the ECIL develops technologies for defence and security purposes, and that they provide equipment to the Defence Ministry and the Delhi Secretariat.
Noting that the Organising Committee (OC) is “turning the corner” and a “substantial progress” has been made in the Commonwealth Games preparations since October, the CGF’s Coordination Commission, however, warns in its report that the 2010 event still risks an operational failure as many key functional areas are lagging behind.
The eight-member CoCom, headed by Commonwealth Games Federation treasurer Austin Sealy, visited the Capital last week for its sixth periodical review of the Games’ progress.
“The OC and its delivery partners have demonstrated substantial progress since the last CoCom, in particular the last two months,” the report said.
The top British gymnasts will skip the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi but the media here is not sure whether it was the fear of 'Delhi Belly' or the scheduling of the event that prompted such reaction from the sports administrators in London.
'The Daily Telegraph' reported it was the fear of 'Delhi Belly', which forced British gymnasts Beth Tweddle, Louis Smith and Daniel Keatings to skip Commonwealth Games, which is still a good 10 months away.
"It's not just the travel and jet lag but the potential for tummy bugs and diarrhoea that exists in making the trip. We just cannot afford to take the risk when so much is at stake," Eddie van Hoof, British Gymnastics' performance director, was quoted as saying by the daily.
New Delhi, Nov 25: India is “pushing the hardest” to ensure that the infrastructure for the 2010 Commonwealth Games is ready in time, Sports Minister M S Gill said on Wednesday as MPs across the spectrum expressed concern in the Rajya Sabha over the country’s preparedness to host the event.
“We are here in a situation where we are pushing the hardest to see that the infrastructure is ready in time to enable the staging of test events (before the October 3-14, 2010 Games),” Gill said while responding to a calling attention motion in the house.
“It is now a question of coming out with dignity and honour. Today the country, the people, the prime minister, everyone is clear; please get it ready in time,” the minister maintained. “This is something that concerns me all the time,” he said, adding that a group of ministers under Urban Development Minister S Jaipal Reddy meets once a week to monitor the progress in constructing the stadium and other infrastructure.
New Delhi, Nov 25 (PTI) Responding to a calling attention motion on next year's Commonwealth Games, Sports Minister M S Gill today assured the Rajya Sabha that all preparations for the multi-discipline event would be completed well in time to ensure that the country hosts it successfully.
The motion regarding the preparation for the Games scheduled in Delhi from October 3 to 14 was tabled by Kalraj Mishra, Mahendra Mohan and O T Lepcha.
"In the overall scheme for the preparation for the Commonwealth Games, the sports infrastructure is to be developed by government agencies, and funded directly by the Government," Gill told the House in is response.
"The responsibility for the Conduct and Delivery of the Games is of the Organising Committee. For this purpose, the OC is funded upfront by the Government as a loan, to be recouped on the basis of revenue neutrality.
New Delhi, Nov 25 (PTI) Allaying fears of delay in preparation for the Commonwealth Games 2010, Government today assured Rajya Sabha that all state-of-the-art stadia and infrastructure will be completed in time and security steps taken to ensure that the mega event is incident-free.
"The stadia will be completed in time. The Government is investing substantial amounts for upgradation of various stadia to be used for the games. These stadia will become state-of-the-of international standart venues ard," Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports M S Gill said.
In a statement on the Calling Attention on the preparation for Commonwealth Games, he said that the financial sanctions for all the stadia, estimated to cost around Rs 4,100 crore, have been accorded and "work is progress at a rapid pace".
It can't shock many that the budget for the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow is on the way north, by £81 million.
Big ticket budgets in the public sector have a nasty habit of slipping, and by a long way.
The question for Glasgow, as for the London Olympics, is what the legacy will be after the athletes have gone home.
The plan is for a regenerated area of each city's east end, just as Manchester benefited.
That's why the athletes' village in Glasgow is being planned with a view to transforming it into permanent use as a new housing estate.
The designer specification is for flats and houses that can suit both purposes. And I'm told that the main difference between an athlete's needs and those of the average Glaswegian is their bathing requirements.
According to one of those at the heart of the plan, the village will have an unusually high number of showers in each new home.
Further comment, from me at least, is probably unwise. source: http://www.bbc.co.uk
New Delhi, Oct 31 (PTI) The 2010 Commonwealth Games Organising Committee has initiated a tree plantation drive in host city Delhi to combat the adverse impact of Games-related construction work on the environment.
"The Organising Committee Commonwealth Games Delhi 2010 is cognizant of the impact that big sporting events have on the environment," OC said in a statement.
"In this context, the OC CWG Delhi 2010 has initiated a plantation drive with Department of Environment (DoE), GNCTD, which has been kicked off at Aaya Nagar city forest today.
"This initiative will be followed by plantations across the five other city forests identified by DoE for the Games," it added.
"About 3,000 saplings were planted in the Aaya Nagar forest by student volunteers from Eco-Clubs schools and colleges of Delhi, members of Delhi Government, Forest Department and OC members," the statement said.
New Delhi, Oct 12(PTI) Racing against time to complete all the projects linked to next year's Commonwealth Games, Delhi Government has sought additional funds from the Centre to expedite work related to the mega sporting event.
"We have sought additional funds (from the Centre) as cost of several projects have escalated," Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit told reporters.
The Chief Minister, however, did not reveal how much money her government has sought from the Centre.
"We are hopeful of getting additional funds as we were told that there will be no shortage of money for any project related to the event," she said.
Officials said the city Government's revenue collection fell by over Rs 400 crore in the first four months of the current fiscal, prompting it to make a request to the Centre for additional funds.
New Delhi, Oct 12 (PTI) Commonwealth Games Federation chief Mike Fennell says many of the reports on Delhi's tardy preparations for the 2010 Games are "not quite accurate" and the government of India is paying full attention to hosting the event successfully.
"We are coming here in the midst of many adverse reports about Delhi, reports that are not quite accurate," Fennell, who has been quite critical in his assessment of Delhi's preparedness in the past, said while inaugurating the Commonwealth Games Federation General Assembly here in Indian national capital New Delhi.
"But one conflicting fact is that attention is being paid by the government of India through (Sports) Minister M S Gill, who has given qualified assurance that all the resources that are necessary to ensure the successful celebration of the Games in 2010 will be provided by the government," he added.
New Delhi, Oct 7 (PTI) Amid mounting concerns about the tardy pace of preparations for next year's Commonwealth Games, CGF chief Mike Fennell today met Sports Minister M S Gill to discuss the progress of work.
Fennell, who arrived in the Capital last night to attend a Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) General Assembly meet on October 12, is understood to have discussed the "areas of concern" with the minister.
The minister briefed Fennell on various projects related to the October 3 to 14 mega-event.
The meeting comes barely a day after Gill's meeting with the Prime Minister in which Manmohan Singh took stock of the ongoing projects in an hour-long meet also attended by Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and Planning Commission Deputy Chairperson Montek Singh Ahluwalia among others.
New Delhi, Oct 8 (PTI) In order to ensure a peaceful atmosphere for athletes participating in the Commonwealth Games, Railways have given their nod for covering rail tracks running close to the upcoming games village here with sound proof material.
The 1.1 km-long sound proof corridor will ensure that athletes are not disturbed by the passing trains and have a comfortable stay in the games village.
"When completed, it will be one its kind sound proof railway corridor in the country," a senior Railway Ministry official said.
The construction work will be carried out by Delhi Development Authority (DDA), which had approached the railways with the idea, he said.
DDA Officials said it will take about three months to construct the corridor. The cost of raising the corridor is being worked out.
New Delhi, Oct 6 (PTI) Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit today met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and briefed him about the status of infrastructure projects being implemented ahead of the Commonwealth Games next year.
Dikshit drove to the Race Course Road residence of the Prime Minister for the meeting which was also attended by Union Sports Minister M S Gill.
Her meeting with Singh comes in the backdrop of criticism that some of the crucial infrastructure projects will miss the October 2010 deadline.
Sources said the Chief Minister has briefed Singh about the status of the Games related projects and where it stands now.
The Dikshit government has been facing flak for delay in construction of virtually every infrastructure project being undertaken by the Delhi government for the big sports event.
New Delhi, Oct 6 (PTI) Air India was today designated as the official carrier of the Commonwealth Games 2010 and said it is mulling to run special charter services to accommodate visitors and sportspersons during the mega event next year.
The airline today signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Commonwealth Games Organising Committee to be the official carrier during the Games, which is scheduled to be held between October 3 and 14, 2010.
"Air India has become the first company to be associated with the Commonwealth Games, and we will put our best foot forward as an official carrier," Air India Chairman and Managing Director Arvind Jadhav said at the signing ceremony.
He said that the national carrier would consider re-routing and upgrading of aircraft as per the requirement depending on the size of foreign delegations.
NEW DELHI: Just a year before India is to host the Commonwealth Games, the boxing arena is filled with dirt and concrete rubble.
The swimming stadium appears to be a half-finished a shell. The track and field stadium, the centerpiece of the games, remains surrounded by cranes and many of the highway overpasses needed to shuttle athletes and fans through New Delhi's notoriously clogged streets are little more than concrete pylons holding nothing. India had hoped the event, from Oct. 3-14 next year and featuring 71 nations and territories of the old British empire, would burnish its international image and smooth the way for bids on more prestigious competitions, maybe even the Olympics. But the slow pace of preparations and repeatedly lapsed deadlines have sparked fears that even this midlevel event will descend into chaos and deeply embarrass India. The emerging crisis also feeds the nation's inferiority complex with regard to neighboring China, which was widely praised for its staging of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. "The whole prestige of the country is involved in organizing (the Games) on time," political analyst Sujit Dutta said. Commonwealth Games Federation chief Michael Fennell has grown so concerned that the delays might jeopardize the New Delhi event, he called for a meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to develop an emergency recovery plan. "Time is certainly not their friend," said Mike Hooper, the CEO of the CGF, who is in New Delhi helping oversee the preparations. "One year away is not a lot of time and there is a lot to be done." The roughly $3 billion event was seen as an opportunity to display the "New India", with its phenomenal growth rate and its increasing status as an Asia power, on an international stage. That optimism has now devolved into a desperate scramble to prevent the Games from becoming a humiliating failure. A government audit issued in July said 14 of the 19 venues were at risk of not being finished on time. In terms of urban infrastructure, more than half of 20 critical bridges and overpasses might not be ready. Media reports said thousands of promised hotel rooms were unlikely to be finished in time. The government shelved plans to clean up some of the capital's notorious slums in favor of planting thousands of bamboo trees to shield the worst neighborhoods from view. It is sending out magistrates in mobile courts who have the power to remove beggars from the city's intersections. The Times of India newspaper, in a recent editorial, pleaded with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to take over the preparations from the local organizers and put the Games on a "war footing." "If we goof up in holding the Games, India will become a laughing stock," the newspaper declared. "It would not only impact India's ambitions to hold other major events, such as the Olympics, but more importantly dent the country's standing as an investment and tourist destination." India's initial bid for the Games promised the venues would be completed by 2007. The local organizers' Web site still says many will be done by September and October 2009. In a recent news conference, local organizers insisted nearly all the venues would be completed by the end of the year. "The job is enormous," said Suresh Kalmadi, chairman of the organizing panel. "This is a challenge. There will be problems, but we will face the problems." Kalmadi angrily denied the delays had forced him to cancel any of the "test events" scheduled as trial runs for the venues before the Games. The next day, with the shooting range badly behind schedule, India announced it would no longer host the 2010 pistol and rifle World Cup in March. The full facelift underway at Talkatora Stadium in the heart of Delhi was scheduled to be completed by October, a year before Commonwealth Games boxers are to square off in the ring there. But the stadium is nowhere near completion. Inside is a shell filled with blue scaffolding. The floor is a pit of ripped-up concrete and mounds of earth. Electric wiring dangles from walls. One bathroom is an empty husk of crumbling brick and mud floors except for shiny new blue and gray tiles lining part of the walls. There was little sign of construction on a recent afternoon. A few dozen people milled around, one or two hammers clanged against metal and an electric saw buzzed in the distance. Hooper said the Dec. 31 deadline for most of the venues "seems a little bit optimistic," though organizers have promised to redouble their efforts and Games officials were "reasonably confident" the venues would get finished by the do-or-die deadline at the end of March. That would leave just enough time for workers to install technical equipment, bring in the needed sports gear, lay the turf and test the facilities for players, media, dignitaries as well as deal with a host of other unexpected issues, officials said. Ron Walker, who was chairman of the organizing committee for the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, Australia, said his staff had to fly in emergency equipment from overseas after uncovering problems during the testing for those games. "There's so many things that can go wrong. Security, we had rehearsals for security for months," Walker, a former Lord Mayor of Melbourne, Australia's second biggest city, and chairman of the annual Australian Formula One Grand Prix, said in a telephone interview. The Manchester 2002 and Melbourne 2006 Games have been praised by CGF officials as the shining examples of how to host the event. Some cautioned patience in India, saying the delays were par for the course in a country where everything from meetings to weddings start late. "Indians do have this knack of pulling things off at the last moment," said TCA Rangachari, a former diplomat. | ||
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New Delhi, Sep 22 (PTI) Ahead of the Commonwealth Games due late next year, the Delhi Police has decided to increase the strength of its dogs squad by inducting 50 more sniffers.
The department will soon come up with an Expression of Interest (EOI) for hiring about 50 dogs along with their trainers.
"We want to ensure a foolproof security cover during the Commonwealth Games. These additional dogs will help us in keeping any untoward incident at bay," Delhi Police spokesperson Rajan Bhagat said.
At present, there are 48 sniffers in the squad and the department is already in the process of procuring 75 others apart from the latest induction.
Bhagat said these 50 dogs will be hired only for a month during the Games.
"The dogs will be imparted skills in both sniffing and tracking.
