Prime Minister Manmohan Singh took command of the Commonwealth Games preparations today, an intervention that came a day after the Congress Core Committee held a discussion on preparedness.
Singh called a mammoth meeting of all those who have anything to do with the Commonwealth Games — Sports Minister M S Gill, Urban Development Minister Jaipal Reddy, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, Delhi Lieutenant Governor Tejinder Khanna, Commonwealth Games Organising Committee Chairman Suresh Kalmadi, Cabinet Secretary K M Chandrashekhar and Home Secretary G K Pillai — and went through all aspects from security to venue readiness and revenue collection.
Following the meeting, government sources said while the core committee mulled giving oversight of the Commonwealth Games to some individual in the Union Cabinet — like Defence Minister A K Antony, for example — who could take control and give the preparations some credibility given that they are mired in charges of corruption, it was hard to find someone who would consent coming in at this stage. Home Minister P Chidambaram was thought to be too busy with internal security management and Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee already has his hands full. Instead, a Group of Ministers, which had been formed in the last UPA government and was revived when the new one was formed, was authorised to step in and ensure timely completion of all the tasks.
The prime minister observed that there had been slippages in the time schedules of some of the construction work and deficiencies had been observed in some of the works. He said that, in the run up to the Commonwealth Games, it was important to gain public confidence by instilling order and carrying out effective supervision of the preparation works. Singh added that all facilities related to the event must meet international standards. Finance Minister Mukherjee has been authorised to act on behalf of the Prime Minister for any decision that the Group of Ministers might decide to take.
There were no appreciable curbs put on the powers of the Organising Committee chief, Suresh Kalmadi, but the committee has been asked to show some results. This is the clearest indication that the government has now begun to act tough on the organisers of the Commonwealth Games and is worried that besides charges of corruption, the event may not go off smoothly.
However, no dramatic decisions can be taken because Parliament is in session and the opposition will get the opportunity to take the government to task if individuals are replaced at this stage. “Replacing individuals — whether the chairman of the CEO of the OC — at this stage can only yield diminishing returns," said a minister to Business Standard, without elaborating. However, sources in the Prime Minister's Office said that Singh was clear that if any irregularity or corruption had occurred, severest possible action would be taken.
