Countries generally view the staging of a major sporting event as the opportunity to showcase their talents. And with India vying with China to be the next great superpower, the Commonwealth Games in Delhi put the country firmly in the spotlight. However, the initial publicity has hardly been the sort that the country wants in its quest to be seen as a modern and progressive country.
Medal Wall of Fame at the Delhi Commonwealth 2010 Games The first event that really caught the public's attention was the collapse of the footbridge that left 27 people injured. This was quickly followed by the ceiling of the weightlifting arena coming down and reports of filthy accommodation for athletes, unfinished facilities and a generally chaotic organisation of the development. This was not the image that the Indian government wanted to project, causing participants to withdraw and leading to suggestions that the Games might not go ahead at all.
Problems, problems, problems ...
Although the latest events have brought the situation to the public's attention, there have been reports of problems for some time. Construction worker deaths had reached 42 by August this year, the highest for any sporting event over the last decade. Even then, this official figure is reported to be understated, with other estimates putting the death toll as high as 70. This compares to 14 deaths at the Athens Olympics, six for Beijing and only one for Sydney. The London 2012 Olympics project has, so far, had no construction fatalities.
Delhi Games have also been mired in allegations of corruption, with India's Central Vigilance Commission investigating reported irregularities on several construction projects. According to The Times of India, the Commission was looking at forged quality certificates, which were apparently issued for sub-standard work. If these allegations are true, they go some way to explaining why structures are falling down.
Delays have been partly due to the unusually wet monsoon season and have resulted in frantic activity to get finished, with 24-hour working normal. This has highlighted the plight of construction workers, many of whom have been brought in from rural areas to work on the project.
With many contracts being awarded and then sub-contracted, the lack of control has made it difficult to know how many workers are involved. Best estimates suggest there are around 40,000 workers, including large numbers of children, all poorly paid and generally living in makeshift tents and similar accommodation. Given the wet weather and appalling living conditions, it's hardly surprising that some workers made use of the athlete's accommodation, resulting in more unsavoury headlines.
Question marks raised over India Capability of India Construction Industry ...
All the reported problems have, as could be expected, raised questions over whether Delhi should have been awarded the Games. There have been the usual allegations of bribery, corruption and voting irregularities. Added to this are opinions that the Commonwealth Games Federation is under-resourced, didn't monitor progress effectively and doesn't have the will to apply sanctions.
The overall impression is of poor planning, inferior workmanship and a lack of urgency, which is not the image that India was hoping to project. After all, it is a nuclear power and has many engineering and construction accomplishments.
For example, Delhi airport has recently opened a £3 billion Terminal 3 that can handle 34 million passengers a year, which British engineering consultancy Mott MacDonald helped to construct (designed by HOK). This opened in July this year and everything was reported to go smoothly (in an embarassing contrast with the Heathrow Terminal 5 opening). The city also has a £2 billion metro system with a recently opened extension.
Whatever the successes, it's always the negatives that hit the headlines, especially for a high-profile sporting event. This has caused a lot of anger among leading Indian business figures, who criticise a lack of leadership and poor monitoring of progress.
It's perhaps a relief that the Games are finally underway and that the opening ceremony was a success. Although the abiding impression at the early events is of rows of empty seats, the stadia do appear to be finished and most things seem to be working.
Legacy of the 2010 Games ...
Providing the event gets through to the end with no catastrophes, the initial problems may be forgotten. The hope is that India will be seen as a country that can successfully stage major events and has the ability to develop the infrastructure required for them. If that is the eventual outcome, the 2010 Commonwealth Games will be seen as a success and worth the investment, despite reportedly costing ten times the original budget. Delhi will at least be left with a legacy that includes the new airport, metro system, eleven new or refurbished venues and many new roads and flyovers that will ease the city's traffic problems.
Conversely, there is the very real chance that the success of the games going forward will not offset the negative publicity to date. In which case the likelihood of another major sporting event taking place in India soon will be slim, and the wider impact of the damage done to India's international reputation could be felt for years to come.
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