A year back, the Commonwealth Games Organising Committee had promised to deliver the venues by December 31, 2009 but after innumerable delays June 30, 2010, was finally set as D-Day.
Now with barely 97 days to go, the Mike Fennell-headed Commonwealth Games Federation is unsure if even that will be possible.
“The progress of work at all the venues has been excellent. Most of the pending jobs will be completed by next week, but our concern is that finishing will take some more time,” CGF president Mike Fennell told this newspaper after surveying the venues and the Games Village on Saturday.
“The OC though might still exceed the June 30 deadline by a few days. That doesn’t mean there is any scope to slacken off because there is absolutely no time to waste,” he added.
While Fennell appeared pleased by the progress, the OC is sceptical about the chances of the finishing the venues by June 30. “The pace of work over the last few weeks has been very good but it is unlikely that all the venues will be ready before the end of July. To add to that the monsoon season is also approaching fast, which will further delay progress,” an OC source said. “The OC is trying its best to speed up proceedings, but the Sports Authority of India is handling the matter. The final delivery lies in their hands,” he added.
Assured that the venues would be complete on time, Fennell however felt that the quality of the Games might get affected if the Central Organising Committee doesn’t get enough time to test the various venues.
“I have been disappointed by some of the media reports claiming that the venues will not be ready in time — rest assured the Games will be held on time. What we want is enough time to test the venues to carry out checks on lighting, seating, electronic scoreboards, etc.,” said the CGF president, who had blasted the local OC in September last year in a strongly-worded letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
“I feel I must personally brief the Prime Minister of India on the lack of preparations and to seek his input in developing an appropriate recovery plan. The government of India has committed significant resources towards the operational delivery of the Games.
“It would be irresponsible and negligent of the CGF not to share its concerns openly with the government,” Fennell had said.
Comparing Delhi’s progress with other Games’ hosts, Fennell said, “I recall working with the OC for the 2004 Athens Games. There were plenty of concerns about the roof over the main venue and building site but everything was handled in time.
“There might be 100 days remaining for the Games, but for us it is more like 60 days. We have surveyed the venues and now we need to speak to the OC about the other operational areas like catering, transport and data management to ensure that these are properly taken care of,” he said.