Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit on Tuesday met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and briefed him about the status of various projects undertaken by her government for next year’s Commonwealth Games amid growing criticism about the tardy pace of the city’s preparations for holding the big event.
The Chief Minister assured the Prime Minister that all efforts are being taken to make the sporting extravaganza a great success and that all the projects will be completed well ahead of commencement of the event, official sources said.
The meeting comes nearly a month after Commonwealth Games Federation President Michael Fennel sought Singh’s intervention to put things in order as it appeared that much of the crucial infrastructure projects will miss the 2010 October deadline.
Dikshit briefed the Prime Minister about measures being taken to fast track work relating to the event.
The meeting was also attended by Sports Minister M S Gill who gave his suggestions and inputs to improve the infrastructure in the national capital ahead of the Games.
“The Chief Minister gave a detailed presentation of status of various projects being implemented to enhance the city’s infrastructure,” sources said.
An official of the Prime Minister’s office also visited various project sites last week to take stock of progress of work.
Meanwhile, sources said the general assembly of the Commonwealth Games Federation is meeting here this week to assess preparation of the city for the event.
The CAG had in a recent report raised concerns over the pace of progress of various infrastructure projects and wondered whether the city government will be able to complete them ahead of the event.
Maintaining that there is a dip in revenue generation, official sources said the city government was contemplating seeking additional funds to the tune of Rs. 1000 crore to upgrade the infrastructure.
