Govt. confident about successful conduct of Commonwealth Games

September 14, 2009 09:21 pm | Updated December 17, 2016 04:44 am IST - NEW DELHI:

UNDER PRESSURE: Suresh Kalmadi, chief of the Indian Olympic Association, is  working to boost the confidence that the games will be conducted on time. File Photo: S. Subramanium

UNDER PRESSURE: Suresh Kalmadi, chief of the Indian Olympic Association, is working to boost the confidence that the games will be conducted on time. File Photo: S. Subramanium

The Union Government is confident about the basic sports infrastructure for the 2010 Commonwealth Games being made available as promised.

Despite delays in several projects, Government sources on Monday asserted that the stadia that were the responsibility of the Central agencies would be ready in time. There could be some delay in three venues, the swimming pool, the shooting ranges and the cycling velodrome, being made ready according to the original schedule but even these facilities would be completed well in time for the Games in October next year.

The sources also stated that the Delhi Government was pushing forward vigorously with all its projects related to the Games including city infrastructure.

The Government was, at the same time, studying the critical comments made by the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) President, Mike Fennell, against the capability of the Organising Committee (OCCG) to deliver the Games operationally, and would see how best the organisational structure could be strengthened.

Unwieldy composition

Sources pointed out the unwieldy composition of the Organising Committee with more than 500 individuals being members of the committee.

In a desperate attempt at damage control, after critical comments made by Mr. Fennell, the OCCG chief, Suresh Kalmadi, on Monday contended that India “will deliver a highly successful” Games.

In an unprecedented step, Mr. Fennell, who has been making frequent visits to Delhi to assess the progress made towards the conduct of the Games, stated in an “internal mail” that unless “there is significant change in the management culture and operation of the Organising Committee these Games will fail from an operational perspective.”

Apparently taken aback by the “leak” of a confidential communication addressed to the CGF Executive Board members and the Executive Board members of the OCCG, Mr. Kalmadi came up with a press release to at least temporarily weather the storm, promising to give a detailed presentation at a media conference on Wednesday.

Meeting with PM

Mr. Kalmadi said that he would be happy to arrange a meeting for Mr. Fennell with the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh next month when the CGF General Assembly was scheduled to meet here. Mr. Fennell had expressed a desire to meet the Prime Minister to brief him on the “lack of preparedness and to seek his input in developing an appropriate recovery plan.”

Apparently in response to the Games Co-ordination Commission’s observation that it was after 27 years that India was hosting a multi-discipline games and despite that there had been a reluctance to engage foreign expertise, Mr. Kalmadi said that the OCCG had a number of competent Indian professionals who had vast experience in conducting world-class events like the Afro-Asian Games and World championships.

“We also believe we have the right mix of overseas and Indian professionals to run the Games,” he said.

Most of the issues raised by the Co-ordination Commission had already been addressed, Mr. Kalmadi, who is also the President of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), said. “We have no doubt about the commitment of the Government of India and the Delhi Government to ensure that the deadlines are met and the Games are a resounding success.”

Three days after attending the September 10 meeting of the OCCG Executive Board, Mr. Fennell came down heavily on the Organising Committee and wrote: “Whilst there is no doubting the commitment of the various stakeholders involved in the delivery of the Games, our main concern relates to the capacity of the Organising Committee to deliver operationally.”

He further stated: “preparations for the Games are significantly behind, so much so that the Commonwealth Games Federation is extremely worried about the Organising Committee’s ability to deliver the Games to any comparable standard to that of the last two editions of the games in Manchester and Melbourne.”

Arguments

It is learnt that at the September 10 meeting, the CGF officials got into arguments with Mr. Kalmadi and others on several issues. Much heat was generated on the insurance cover needed for the Games with the CGF CEO, Mike Hooper, arguing that if necessary the CGF would be ready to finalise arrangements.

Mr. Hooper had been living here for more than two years, at considerable expense to the Organising Committee, in co-coordinating the work of the CGF and the OCCG.

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