“Commonwealth Games will be off to an auspicious start once AR Rahman starts singing,” says SM Krishna
There might have been hurdles and delays in the preparations for Commonwealth Games, however, the External affairs Minister of India SM Krishna said on Wednesday that the crisis-hit event will be off to an auspicious start once AR Rahman renders the welcome
song this Sunday in New Delhi.
Krishna, while speaking at the Asia Society, assured that the event will be a success and looked confident that all the athletes will be satisfied and happy with the overall preparations of the Games.
"This much I can assure you as an Indian and as a minister of the external affairs of India that on Sunday when AR Rahman starts with his welcome orchestra, I think we will be off to a an auspicious start," said the External affairs Minister in response
to a volley of questions on the event.
The competition will be inaugurated at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Sunday in New Delhi.
Krishna, however, modestly admitted that there have been hurdles in the run-up to the big event in New Delhi, and also blamed the lengthy and heavy spell of monsoon in the Northern India to be one of the causes in the making.
"We did not anticipate that the monsoons will be so prolonged and so heavy and as a result of that the preparations got delayed but the news that is coming out of New Delhi in the last two days that things are improving. However, the athletes have started
coming to New Delhi and they will be very pleased with the arrangements," he added.
Krishna, who is in the United States of America for taking part in the first session of the General Assembly, has responded well to a variety of queries by the Indian and foreign reporters regarding the hurdles associated with the event on Wednesday.
Various comparisons have been made for the failure of the Indian side to get its act together versus China's successful holding of the Olympic Games and South Africa's fabulous conducting of the Football World Cup earlier this season.
Krishna said that the criticisms might have been loud in the pre-games period; however, eventually what would matter is how the competition was held and staged.
"This has been said about every international athletic competition before it starts... questions are always asked and doubts are always expressed... the ultimate proof is eating of the pudding. I am going to be back here again next year and then you can put
to me this question how well we conducted the Commonwealth Games," said the External Affairs Minister on Wednesday.
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