A space crunch at the venue forced many delegates from abroad to miss Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's inaugural address at the Pravasi Bhartiya Diwas here on Sunday, causing them deep disappointment.
The delegates were seen requesting police officials on duty at Birla Auditorium, the main venue of PBD, to let them enter and find a place to sit.
Over 1,700 delegates have registered for the Jan 7-9 event so far against a seating capacity of 1,200 at the Birla Auditorium.
"There were many delegates, around 200-250, who came to me and requested to let them inside the auditorium to attend the inaugural function. But we were not able to do so as the auditorium was full to capacity. We were helpless," a junior police officer told IANS on condition of anonymity.
"I came here at 8.30 a.m. and was not able to find a seat. We had to stand outside. We were not able to watch the PM deliver the inaugural address. We came here to be part of this event, not to stand outside," said H.R. Jangid, a delegate from Dubai.
Echoing similar views, Chandram Mookim from the US said the government should have organised the function at a bigger venue. "It does not make sense to come here and not attend the sessions or the inaugural address," Mookim said.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, admitting space constraint and expressing his regret, said: "I am aware that there is limited space in the hall, which troubled some of the delegates. I assure you next time we will have these kind of events at much bigger venue."