By IANS,
New Delhi: An off-the-cuff remark by a Commonwealth Games Federation member during the delgates’ conducted tour of various venues Thursday caught the organisers off guard, and thereafter the media was kept at an arm’s length for the rest of the day.
Ephraim Penn, president of the British Virgin Islands Olympic Committee, was caught on camera at the Games Village blurting out that “a lot of work still remains to be done.”
“Quite a bit of work has been done and there is still a lot more to be done,” he said.
The official reaction to the off-the-cuff remark came from Commonwealth Games Organising Committee (CGOC) secretary general Lalit Bhanot, who said: “Yes, there is still a lot more to be done and we will meet the deadline.”
But Bhanot asserted that the delegates were happy with the progress of the work.
“Members of 71 countries went around visiting the venues and the Games Village today and they are satisfied with the progress of work. There is still 360 days to go for the event and all will be well by then,” he said.
“Everything could have been finished two years back but that would have been of no use. The best thing is that the dates of the test events have been finalised and there will not be any change. That means we are well on time,” Bhanot told a news conference in the evening.
Asked about the comments of Penn, Bhanot said: “We still have lots of things to do and we will meet the deadline.”
The visit of the delegates, who are here for the federation’s general assembly, comes in the wake of CGF chief Mike Fennell raising doubts over the OC’s ability to host the mega event.
OC chairman Suresh Kalmadi concurred with his secretary general, saying that everything is fine and the delegates are happy with the progress of the work.
Three buses carrying the delegates and a convoy of eight cars of police escorts went around the city on a delegates’ inspection tour of the 10 venues.
The media were kept at a fair distance from the delegates and only photographers and television camera persons were allowed inside the security ring.
Media restrictions got worse after Penn’s remark and when the delegates visited Thyagaraj Stadium. Police and OC officials kept reporters 500 metres off the premises.
Penn told IANS Wednesday that security will be one of the major points on the agenda for both the executive board and the General Assembly sessions.
“Everybody has security concerns and we are following closely what is happening in this part of the world. The Mumbai terror strikes and the attack on Sri Lankan cricketers in Lahore have caused some discomfort among the member countries,” he said.
Penn pointed out that the challenges faced by India are similar to those faced by other countries in the past.
“All countries who have hosted the Commonwealth Games have faced such challenges while organising the Games.”