Common Wealth Organisation Blues
Despite spending billions on infrastructure, the organisers of the common wealth games are finding it extremely tough to cope with the momentous task of organizing an event that has more than 10,000 athletes from around the world.
The task is proving to be an obdurate one and even the government has acknowledged the severity of the task as Pranab Mukherjee, India's Finance Minister has admitted that the country is lagging in sports facilities and infrastructure.
He added that a great deal of investment is needed to overcome the gap that has thwarted the growth and development of sports in the country.
"I have only one thing to say. We should not stay in the past. We have to overcome the present and move towards the future. For that we need to prepare a sporting mentality, proper infrastructure through which we can develop that mentality. We are really lagging behind and we need to overcome that as soon as possible," said Mukherjee.
The Minister did not indulge in the debate over the facilities that are being developed for the Games, saying that he wants to see how the event goes and hopes that his government would be able to muster a good show.
There have been reports surfacing in the Indian media suggesting a grave mismanagement of funds that have been kept aside for the development of infrastructure for the Games.
On the other hand, there was a major setback for the organisers of the event as rainwater seeped through the newly installed roof of one of the stadiums that will be used for the Games.
The weightlifting facility has been affected due to the seepage that is set to jeopardize the event, unless there is a timely intervention by the concerned authorities.
The stadium was inaugurated by Jaipal Reddy state minister for Urban Development.
Present on the occasion were some of the leading ministers and members of the government besides M. S. Gill the minister of Sports and Youth Affairs.
Reddy downplayed the leaks and said that it is being monitored carefully.
"In this auditorium, where leaking is taking place, it has a different system. System has been made to drain out water - those are being mistaken for leakage points. If there are some leakage points, they are being watched carefully and they will be attended to," clarified Reddy as journalists inquired about the embarrassing leakage.
Besides the leakage issue, there is a huge pile of debris which has accumulated outside the venue, yet no one it seems is interested in clearing the pile, causing a real problem to the visitors.
"There is shortage of labour, this one of the problems and we are, therefore, mobilizing all possible (labourers) to clear the debris," said Reddy.
The 12-day event will be staged from 3rd to 14th October and will be the biggest sporting event in the country, since the same city played host to the Asian Games in 1982.
The federal Sports Ministry has spent a big sum of Rs 300 million to upgrade and renovate various hostels across the city; these hostels are set to be used to accommodate thousands of athletes that are going to stay in the city during the duration of the Games.
The city is also bracing to host millions of fans who are set to travel from all over the country to one of the most historic cities in the region.
Tags: