There are several aspects to the hosting of the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi in October. Possibly the most crucial for us as a nation was to have used the opportunity to showcase to the world the strides the country has made in many spheres of modern life, and seek to attract gains in diverse areas on the basis of the favourable impression created. China should serve as an object lesson in this regard. The breathtaking show it put up when it hosted the Beijing Olympics in 2008 guaranteed its status as a nation and society that can deliver quality, and on schedule. The Olympics more than confirmed China’s position and image as a manufacturing megapower, and the envy of other leading nations. The extraordinarily successful hosting of the international sporting event held every four years would doubtless have given the Chinese an advantage in dealing with the rest of the world, especially developing countries, that would ordinarily take years of hard diplomacy to build. There is thus no surprise that being given the privilege of hosting a mega-event is in effect an opportunity for power projection. The billions of dollars that the event cost China were clearly well spent. The massive expenditure guaranteed bountiful returns by way of trade, tourism, investment opportunities overseas, attracting inward investments, and by helping the expansion of China’s soft power as a doer nation and a technological power. In the course of building the infrastructure for the Olympics, the Chinese augmented their infrastructure that would have a long-term beneficial impact on their economy and on the everyday life of ordinary people. The remarkable success of the Beijing Olympics had the profound effect on many of effacing the negative impact of China running a repressive, anti-democratic, political regime. It is quite evident that those in India charged with getting India’s capital ready to host the Commonwealth Games had none of the above in view, or they wouldn’t be all set to deliver what has all the makings of a shabby show that is likely to attract the world’s opprobrium.
The Commonwealth Games are much smaller in scale than the Olympics, and yet the privilege to host it is not easy to come by. Experts take a close look at a country’s ability to execute the Games infrastructure. India came through the scrutiny but runs the risk of faltering at the execution stage. This is a poor advertisement for its political executive, especially with those entrusted with overseeing the Games preparations. A little over two months to go for the opening of the Games a day after Gandhi Jayanti, and the nation’s capital is choking with uncleared debris, unfinished stadiums and other facilities associated with the Games. News reports highlight the last-minute rush and confusion to meet deadlines, and of passing the buck. Long before now, the dry runs should have commenced to ensure the success of the event on which about Rs 35,000 crores are said to have been spent. The plain reason for this not happening is that Delhi is virtually run by builder cabals that are in league with corrupt politicians and bureaucrats. These thrive on delays. When schedules are slipping, no questions are asked and cart blanche is given to take shortcuts, to cover up the use of below-par materials and shoddy execution through quick fixes, even if these will be exposed in weeks if not days. These are ways to shortchange the public exchequer and ultimately the Indian people. Some of former Union sports minister Mani Shankar Aiyar’s criticisms of the CWG appear zany, but he is right when he says that the Games have not been leveraged to improve the lot of the ordinary people of Delhi, as was done in, say, Manchester. Perhaps it is time for the highest levels of the government to bestir themselves.