As the Commonwealth Games journey comes to an end on Thursday, the organisers have promised that the closing ceremony of the Games would be much better than the opening ceremony - both inside and outside the stadium. Cultural razzmatazz, sprinkled with more popular music and performers inside the stadium, are likely to be complimented by smoother entry for the spectators to the stadium. There would be no let up on security though as Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapakasa will be the chief guest and several VVIPs attending it.
The closing ceremony is set to feature singers like Zila Khan, Kailash Kher and Hariharan, who will belt out sufi and semi-classical numbers. Songs like Chak De and Allah Ke Bande are likely to get the crowd on their feet, while rendition of Vande Mataram by more than 2,000 school students is expected to keep them in thrall. Realising that it was Rahman's Jai Ho, which got the crowd on its feet more than the Games anthem sung by A.R. Rahman, the organisers have allowed a little more of Bollywood this time around. A 450-strong contingent of bagpipers from Scotland, where the next Games would be held at Glasgow, will also be a high point of the closing ceremony, besides laser shows and pyrotechnics. Beginning 7 pm, the ceremony will continue till 9.30 pm. The spectators' entry will begin around 2 pm. The entire city, meanwhile, will be shut. Outside the stadium, the Organising Committee and the police have promised to get their act together. Iron railings have been installed at the gates to channelise the queues.