Additional machinery, staff to speed up CWG preparation: Govt

STAFF WRITER 15:25 HRS IST
New Delhi, Dec 17 (PTI) The apprehensions regarding the progress of work notwithstanding, the Indian government today insisted that the venues for next year's Commonwealth Games would be completed on time by deploying additional machinery and increasing the number of supervisory staff.

Responding to a question in the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Sports Prakashbapu Patil said the the progress of work was being monitored closely.

"The work on all the competition venues is progressing at a rapid pace, recovery plans have been worked out, wherever required, which inter-alia, includes increase in the number of supervisory staff and labour, increase in working hours, deployment of additional machinery, close monitoring and procurement of critical and special items, to compete the work within the revised targets," Patil said.

Fennell meets Gill to discuss CWG preparations

STAFF WRITER 19:24 HRS IST

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.