Indian boxers Sweating for Commonwealth Games

The Netaji Subhash National Institute of Sports in Patiala is known as the "Mecca of Indian sports". Today, it is abuzz with top-notch boxing players of the country practicing here for upcoming World Boxing Championship and the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

The Indian pugilists are practicing here to ensure that they win medals at sports events in Milan (Italy) and in New Delhi.

India is to send a team of nine boxers for the world championship where over 700 boxers from 100 countries will vie for medals in their respective weight categories.

Among the boxers is Vijender Singh, who is in high spirits since winning a medal at the Beijing Olympics. He is practicing hard for World Boxing Championship to be held in Italy in September this year and is optimistic about bringing laurels to the country.

Singh hails from Haryana and is due to receive this years prestigious Rajiv Khel Ratna Award, the highest award for excellence in sports in India.

We are practicing hard for the World Boxing Championship. The event is considered to be the toughest of all competitions. India has never won any medal in the World Boxing Championship, but we are practicing hard to bring it this time as we did in the Olympics, said Vijender Kumar, Olympic Bronze medalist.

I feel a team event is completely different from an individual sport. Cricket is a good team sport but other sports should be given equal status in the country. It is good that for the first time three sportsperson in individual sports are going to be honored.

It sends a message that individual sports are being recognized in India and have a good future. Youngsters have started taking to individual sports rather going in for cricket. In individual sports, you can easily prove yourself and gain from it, Vijender added.

Besides Vijender Singh, other medal hopes are from Akhil and Jitendra, who won several hearts at the Beijing Olympics.

Akhil Kumar beat world champion Sergey Vodopyanov of Russia in the bantamweight pre-quarterfinals last August.

People are noticing the growth in boxing because everybody wants a good career and they work very hard for it. People are realizing that boxing can give you name and fame like cricket. It causes pain but this pain has its own high. There is no such addiction like pain in this sport. It’s the best, said Akhil Kumar.

The pugilists have been toiling hard for the last six months under the guidance of national coach G. S. Sandhu. Presently, 40 boxers are undergoing training.

Suranjoy Singh, who recently won a gold medal at the Asian Championship, is India’s other bright hope.

Recognition is there in the world today because it is the first time that four boxers have got world medals I think there is an overall improvement in the boys and they are taking a keen interest. Everybody is working very hard, we don’t have to push them to work, said Sandhu.

Chandigarh Bagged Rs 2 Crore to Prepare Tourism Professional for 2010 CWG

Government of India has allotted city Chandigarh Rs 2 crore under Vision-2022 to prepare human resources in hospitality sector before the Commonwealth Games in 2010.

Information to this effect was shared by Chandigarh Industrial and Tourism Development Corporation Limited (CITCO) general manager (tourism), A K Malhotra that the granted fund will be utilized to raise manpower in alternate institutes, affiliated with All India Colleges and Technical Institutes, would offer an excellent opportunity to unskilled youngsters to make a vocation in the sector.

Major Overhaul needed for Delhi Public Transport System

Metro has changed the way Delhi travels but a lot needs to be done to revamp the capital’s public transport, especially buses, before Games


The capital has often been riled for not overhauling its rickety, unreliable and, at times, killer public transport (read Bluelines). Even though Metro brought about a much-needed image makeover, Delhi has a lot of ground to cover. And Commonwealth Games 2010 came as a godsend opportunity for city government to revamp the public transport. An integrated plan with Delhi Metro as the backbone, along with buses, taxis, LRT and monorail as supplementary modes, was envisaged for transforming the way city moves.

Even as Metro projects are largely on schedule, the bus service may need special attention, especially after a Supreme Court mandate that Delhi needs no less than 11,000 buses. The state transport department’s plan to augment the DTC fleet is in fast lane and the city already has 625 new buses, including 25 AC ones. Orders for another 3,500 buses have been placed and they may start rolling in by next month. DTC will get over 6,000 buses by next year. The routes are being redone with the total number of bus routes being increased from existing 357 to 670.

But DTC fleet will account for only 60% of the total buses. For the remaining, the transport department has planned replacing Blueline buses with private bus fleet run by corporate. For this, the city has been divided into 17 clusters, each comprising a bunch of overlapping bus routes, to be run by one entity. The new system is aimed at eradicating competition between different bus operators running on the same route, as this was seen as the main problem with the Blueline fleet. The new timetables for the fleet will be made using a new technology to ensure that no trips go wasted.

But more than a year after the scheme was finalized; the government is yet to award an operator to run the first cluster. As per the first deadlines set by the transport department, the first lot of over 200 buses should have been operational by July this year. But far from that, even the contract has not been awarded. According to sources, the plan has run into rough weather because the government was unable to estimate the huge cost.

The lowest bidder for the first cluster, Star Bus Ltd, has quoted a rate of Rs 47.50 per km per bus. The government will have to pay Rs 85 crore per annum to the operator for 230 buses plying 200 km daily. It is a 10-year commitment to pay and the fares will need to be revised from time to time. This, sources say, is going to put a huge burden on the government.

The tenders for the remaining 16 clusters have also been put on hold till the fate of the first one is decided. Now, it seems unlikely that the clusters will get operational before the Games as the awardees of the clusters will need time to procure new buses, get staff and set up control rooms. The transport department has set a time of about 6 months from the day the tender is awarded for these formalities.

The other project which has gone off track is the controversial Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system, which received a major setback when trial runs on the pilot corridor between Ambedkar Nagar and Moolchand resulted in a major public outcry. Now, Pilot B, the second design for BRT with bus lanes on the extreme left, will get operational on the remaining part of the pilot stretch — Moolchand to Delhi Gate in September. Till then, six more BRT corridors planned have been put on hold till the working of Pilot B is seen.

Transport Department’s SPV Delhi Integrated Multi-Modal Transit System (DIMTS) is also working on an integration plan to connect all the modes of transport by means of integrated terminals and a common ticketing system. But not much has progressed.

With all the projects in place, the government had envisaged a reduction in private vehicles on Delhi roads — almost 1,000 vehicles are added to the existing 51 lakh-odd vehicles. Over 70 flyovers are coming up and important road projects like an east-west road link between the Games Village and Lodhi Road and strengthening of the Ring Road are expected to ease the situation further.

M. S.Gill Wants Players to Focus on Singles

.Sports Minister M.S. Gill Saturday asked Indian tennis players to concentrate on singles events ahead of the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

Gill said it is heartening to see a bunch of competent players coming up before the quadrennial event, taking place here Oct 3-14 next year, as he watched the $15,000 Central Bank International Tennis Federation (ITF) tournament final between Yuki Bhambri and Rohan Gajjar at the Delhi Lawn Tennis Association (DLTA) complex this morning.

"Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi have done great service to Indian tennis but age is a factor that no one can fight. But we have four-five players, who are looking good. (Somdev) Devvarman has suddenly come up, then there is Rohan Bopanna. We are doing every possible effort to help them," Gill said.

"But it is the singles that calls for serious play. Look at Andy Murray, he is still fighting to win his first Grand Slam. So it is not so easy. Doubles events are fine while mixed doubles are fun."

Gill said the sports ministry will extend all support to the All India Tennis Association (AITA).

"The money for the tournament is coming from the government and I have requested the Central Bank to increase the prize money for the next ITF tournament and they have agreed."

Asked if the construction of the tennis stadium for the Commonwealth Games is running behind the schedule, Gill said: "There is still plenty of time for it. December is the deadline but it can stretch to three-four in January. It will be ready on time."

Physiotherapy Boost for Paddlers engaged in CWG preparation

To keep the paddlers on pinnacle of their fitness before the 2010 Commonwealth Games, the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) has roped in a Delhi-based physiotherapist who is working with the players at the ongoing month-long training camp in Pune.

Physiotherapy specialist Vandana Tanwar was appointed following the 2010 Commonwealth Games Federation's steering committee meeting last week and she will accompany the players in all the important tournaments on the run-up to the Games to judge their fitness level.

"Tanwar has been given a contract till October next year when the Delhi Games is scheduled and all the expenses will be borne by Commonwealth Federation till then. She joined the team two days back in Pune," TTFI treasurer V K Bawa said.

"This kind of scientific approach is quite important to improve the performance in international circuit. She (Tanwar) will work with both the men and women paddlers to make out what to be done to improve their fitness levels before the 2010 Games," Bawa said.

Joint Secretary of Union Sports Ministry Rahul Bhatnagar was present at the meeting which was also attended by TTFI technical committee chairman Dhanraj Choudhry, Secretary Moolchand Chauhan and Bhawani Mukherjee, chief coach for table tennis in NIS Patiala.

No doctors for athletes training for 2010 Commonwealth Games

Guess how many doctors are available for 250 elite athletes training for the 2010 Commonwealth Games at the National Institute of Sports, Patiala? None. The last physician, Dr Ashok Ahuja, retired on Thursday and at Rs 25,000 that the Sports Authority of India (SAI) is reportedly offering, chances of a replacement being found quickly appear slim.

Despite repeated efforts, NIS executive director LS Ranawat couldn’t be reached. He didn't return HT's calls and didn't reply to text messages.

Olympic bronze medallist boxer Vijender Singh and Asian Games silver medallist wrestler Geetika Jakhar are among the campers. Apart from camps for elite boxers, wrestlers, weightlifters, athletes and gymnasts, the NIS also has a large batch of young cadets at the Centre of Excellence and students pursuing diploma courses.

Lack of qualified medical personnel forces athletes to seek treatment outside, putting them at serious risk of being given medicines banned by the World Anti Doping Agency. That’s not all. Lack of medicine supplies often mean that they may have the prescription but not the panacea.

Three weeks ago, a boxer in the Games’ core group of athletes suffering from acute stomach pain was shifted to a hospital outside the NIS because medicines weren’t available in the campus. It was the same with Ram Singh, another India pugilist. “The SAI keeps saying they are spending crores on our training but they don’t even have proper medical facilities,” said an international boxer.

“Earlier, medicines at the health centre was a problem and now there will be no doctor. In combat sports, chances of injuries are greater and full-time medical support is needed,” said a coach. “Now, players will have to go out to get treated. That’s dangerous because other doctors have no idea about the banned drugs.”

Sources at SAI said replacements were interviewed earlier in the week but none fit the bill. “At Rs 25,000 which is what the SAI will pay, you can’t even get a normal physician, forget getting a sports medicine doctor,” a source said.

Interestingly, there are only two physiotherapists here, both hardpressed for time from their teaching responsibilities.

Top Women Weight Lifters dropped from 2010 CWG elite list

Shailaja, Renubala to be dropped from 2010 CWG elite list

Four top women lifters of the country, including Shailaja Pujari, will be dropped from the core group for the 2010 Commonwealth Games preparations after they failed to report for the national camp in time, Indian Weightlifting Federation said on Sunday.

Pujari, Renubala Chanu, S Yamini and Shristi Singh were among 60 elite lifters selected for 2010 Commonwealth Games training which started in February but the quartet did not turn up for the camp at Patiala despite given an extended time to join.

IWF President Harbhajan Singh said that the four lifters would not be allowed to join the camp as the extended dateline for doing so has expired on April 10.

"First they did not join the camp in February and they did not furnish us the reasons in writing. Secondly, they failed to report by April 10, the last date for joining the camp. We are going to drop them," Harbhajan said from Lucknow.

Pujari won three gold in 2002 Manchester Commonwealth Games in 75 kg while Renu Bala won the yellow metal in the 2006 Melbourne Games in 58 kg. Yamini won a bronze in 58 kg in the National Championships in Pune early this year while Shristi Singh earned a silver in 69 kg in the Commonwealth Youth Games in Pune last year.

Their hopes of taking part in 2010 Commonwealth Games are as good as over with Harbhajan saying that any lifter outside the elite list would not be considered unless he or she came up with some extraordinary performance in national championships later this year.

"We are not going to add anybody to the elite list unless he or she performs extraordinarily well, such as breaking some records -- national or Commonwealth or Asian -- in the National Championships.

"If we have to add any lifter we would not know his or her status of dope testing whereas those in the national camp will be constantly monitored from the very beginning. That is why we are not likely to add any lifter later on," Harbhajan explained.

While announcing the elite list for training camp, the IWF had said that the number of lifters would be pruned down from 60 to 45 by the end of December and to 30 by June next year.

India is expected to compete in each of the 15 categories (eight men and seven women) in weightlifting in 2010 Commonwealth Games and the IWF would select a lifter out of the two who will remain after June 2010.

Namibia National Olympic Committee Announced Tough Standards for 2010 CWG

The Namibia National Olympic Committee announced strict new qualifying criteria for Namibian athletes who want to qualify for the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi, India. At a press conference in Windhoek, NNOC president Agnes Tjongarero said they had decided to raise the standards to improve Namibia’s competitiveness at the highest level.

“If you look at the countries that won gold medals at the last All Africa Games, most of them could not even win bronze at the 2008 Olympic Games, which means that we will have to try harder. If we as a country cannot even make it at the All Africa Games, why do we even bother to go to the Olympic Games? That is why we have adjusted the criteria, if you cannot reach these levels, and then just try harder for next time,” she said.

According to the criteria Namibian athletes will have to be ranked amongst the top two in Africa in all the codes. Besides that, the qualifying criteria for certain individual codes like athletics and swimming have been set at a high level.

Swimmers, for instance, will have to reach 850 FINA points per event, while they will have to qualify twice at internationally recognized events. The 850-standard is much higher than even the qualifying standard for the 2009 World Championships of 650 points. A record eight Namibian swimmers qualified for this year’s World Championships which will take place in Rome in August, but national swimming coach Ryan Skinner said he doubted whether anyone would qualify according to the new criteria.

“It’s a huge increase and there’s definitely a concern that that will be too exclusive with the time frame involved. We’ve only got 18 months to prepare and that sort of improvement in standard may lead to nobody being able to make the standard. I think it’s a good idea that the FINA points are lifted over time to gradually improve the standards and to let everyone be aware that more is expected of them, but that sort of improvement in standard might end up leading to despondency amongst our swimmers,” he said.

Tjongarero stuck to her guns, saying the standards would remain.

“It would be regrettable if none of the swimmers qualified, but we have to try and reach it. What’s the use if we come last – we don’t want to embarrass anyone? Let’s try and get there, and if not, it’s not the end of the world. There will be more events coming up like the 2011 All Africa Games in Mozambique,” she said.

Meanwhile, athletics in Namibia faces a quandary since Namibian athletes will not be able to qualify for events since the world governing body, the IAAF, does not approve anyone in charge of Namibian athletics.

Since Athletics Namibia’s aborted presidential elections in November last year, athletics has been run by an Interim Committee, but the IAAF said that it didn’t recognize the Interim Committee. It said it would send a delegate to Namibia to sort out the impasse, who was supposed to arrive in April. According to Tjongarero the delegate will now only arrive in May.

“We received a letter from the IAAF saying that they did not recognize anyone running athletics here in Namibia. Our athletes can only qualify by competing at IAAF-recognized events, but someone who is recognized by the IAAF has to enter our athletes. We asked them if the Interim Committee can enter our athletes, but it seems that their delegate will now only arrive in May and in the meantime our athletes are suffering because they cannot compete,” she said.

At the same event Tjongarero handed over a sponsorship of N$10 000 to the Namibian Bowling Association so that it can compete in an international competition, the Atlantic Rim Tournament in South Africa in May. Namibia will compete against some of the top bowling nations from the Atlantic rim like England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, the United States, Brazil and Canada at the event.

AFI announces events for GP meets

The Athletics Federation of India (AFI) on Friday announced that it would conduct three prize money Indian Grand Prix meets in the South in May.

The meets would be held in Kochi (May 3), Coimbatore (May 8) and Chennai (May 14).

In order to earn prize money, the athletes would be required to participate in all the three meets. Prize money would be available for the top three places in individual events.

There would be no prize money in relay events.

Interested athletes should route their entries through States/Boards by April 25 to the AFI. National campers preparing for the 2010 Commonwealth Games would compete in the series.

The events:

Kochi:

Men: 100m, 400m, 800m, 3000m, 110m hurdles, high jump, long jump, shot put, discus and javelin.

Women: 100m, 400m, 800m, 3000m, 100m hurdles, high jump, triple jump and discus.

Coimbatore:

Men: 200m, 400m, 1500m, 5000m, 400m hurdles, high jump, triple jump, shot put, discus, javelin and 4x100m.

Women: 200m, 400m, 1500m, 5000m, long jump, discus and 4x100m.

Chennai:

Men: 100m, 400m, 1000m, 110m hurdles, 400m hurdles, long jump, shot put, discus, javelin and 4x100m.

Women: 100m, 400m, 1000m, 100m hurdles, high jump, triple jump, discus and 4x100m.

Grand Prix athletic meets in Kochi, Coimbatore and Chennai

The Athletics Federation of India (AFI) has announced that athletes must take part in all three Grand Prix summer events next month to earn prize money awarded to the the top three finishers.

There would, however, be no prize money in relay events.

The three meets will be held down south at Kochi (May 3), Coimbatore (May 8) and Chennai (May 14).

The athletes should route their entries to the AFI through States or sports boards by April 25. Athletes in the national camps, preparing for the 2010 Commonwealth Games, will take part in the meets.

2010 Commonwealth Games Tennis Probables sweat it out

The Capital is already veering towards the sultry days of extreme summer, but Monday’s high temperature didn’t seem to affect the bunch gathered at the DLTA Complex. With Jaidip Mukherjea watching from the sidelines and Enrico Piperno shouting instructions, the 2010 Commonwealth Games tennis probables seemed intent on getting things right.

Vivek Shokeen, Divij Sharan, Ashutosh Singh, Navdeep Singh, VM Ranjeet, Vishnu Vardhan, Abhijeet Tiwari and Rohan Gajjar are part of the camp, with Mukherjea, Piperno and Arun Kumar providing the expertise. It will be a hectic next few months for this group with training camps and tournaments lined up one after another.

Prior to this, the players had just returned from a 4-week training stint at Nick Bolletieri’s academy in Florida, and the excellent facilities there proved to be an eye-opener. “It’s a world class tennis centre, and the time spent there has done them an immense amount of good, particularly on improving their fitness. They have a hectic 6-8 months ahead but they’re a good bunch of kids, and no complaints so far,” laughs Piperno.

“The girls are in the Bolletieri academy right now, and we will have a similar camp like this for them once they return next month. By the end of the year, we will probably start weeding out some players, but it’s too early to decide anything right now,” he adds.

Mukherjea wishes they had started the schedule two years ago preparing for the Games. “They were kept busy in Florida, it was either playing or training in the gym, but it helped them a lot as they got to play with quality players. Top ATP players like Tommy Haas, Max Mirnyi, Martin Damm were all there too, and seeing players like that sweating it out motivates you a lot,” says the former Davis Cupper.

Feeney to conduct two-week national camp for archers

The Indian compound archers will begin training for 2010 Commowealth Games with a two-week national camp under Australian coach Peter Feeney who has been roped in by the Archery Association of India (AAI) ahead of the Delhi meet.

Feeney will land here tomorrow evening and the camp will start from Sunday.

The Aussie had approached the AAI after the Indian Federation invited applications for the coach's position on the FITA (International Archery Federation) website.

The camp, which will be held at the Sports Authority of India (SAI) Eastern India Centre at Salt Lake, will begin with 15 men and 15 women in the compound section.

The SAI Eastern India nodal centre has been officially declared as the venue of the national camps for archery, lawn bowling and rugby.

The camp for the recurve archers will also be held at the same venue with newly-appointed chief coach Limba Ram scheduled to arrive on Monday.

Confirming the development, AAI secretary general Paresh Nath Mukherjee told PTI, "Feeney will look after the compound section in preparation for the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi. I am sure his experience will help the Indian compound archers.

"Limba Ram, being the chief coach, will join the camp on the second day when the recurve camp will also begin." The recurve section will have 16 men and 16 women.

A panel of 12 coaches appointed for the Delhi Commonwealth Games will also attend the camp.

The probables :

Men's compound: K Ratan Singh, Birsa Bandiya, S Sridhar, L.Haridas Singh, Arun Sharma, Sonam Pintso, M Chinglen Sana, Bijoy Rai, G Titomash Sharma (all SSCB); KSH Nikon Mangang (Manipur); Abhishek Verma (Delhi); Jayantilal Ninoma (Rajasthan); Palton Hansdah (Jharkhand); Isaiah Sanam (AP); Amrender Singh (Punjab).

Recurve: Tarundeep Rai, W Ranjan Singh Junior, Harish Chand Kerai, MR Tirkey, Bulbul Marandi, N Ravinder, Viswash, K Shiv Shankar and Gurucharan Besra (all SSCB); Jayanta Talukdar, Rajiv Basumatary and Rahul Banerjee (all SPSB), Mangal Singh Champia (Railways), Kapil and Priyank (both UP); Pawan Khalkho (Jharkhand).

Women's compound: Namita Yadav, Jhanu Hansda, Bheigyabati Chanu, Sweety Kumari, Manjudha Soy, Ashrita Kerketta, Niva Kerketta, Sumantala Murmu and Harsha Bharadwaj (all Jharkhand); Saksro Besra (Railways); Anjali Kumari (MP); Mandava Rishitha (AP); Pratibha Rani (CRPF); Gaganjot Kaur (Punjab); Jailaxmi Sarikonda (Maharashtra).

Recurve: Dola Banerjee, L Bombayla Devi, Reena Kumari and Sushma (Railways); Rimil Buiruli, Pratima Boro, Vardhineni Pranitha and Laxmi Rani Majhi (SPSB); Chekrovolu Swuro (Nagaland); Punyaprabha (UP); Belsir Narzary (Assam); Deepka Kumari (Jharkhand); Nisha Tomar (Chandigarh); Bimala Hasda (WB); Mamta Nagi (Punjab); B Lucy Devi (Manipur).

Panel of coaches:

Limba Ram (chief coach), Dharmendra Tiwari, Purnima Mahato, Harinder Singh, D Saiswari Rao, Ravi Shankar, Richpal Singh, RB Tamang, Ch. Lenin, Jiwanjot Singh, Lokesh Chand and B Gunicha Devi.

Renowned Italian coach to groom Indian paddlers

Renowned Italian coach Massimo Constantini will groom Indian paddlers for the 2010 Commonwealth Games scheduled in the capital.

The Steering Committee for the Games which met on Friday approved Constantini as the coach who would train the 40 'core probables' selected for the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

Constantini's appointment comes barely a fortnight after the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) decided not to extend the contract of Belarussian coach Aleksey Yefremov.

Constantini, a high-performance coach and coach education course conductor of the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF), has been working with the Seychelles team.

The Sports Ministry had earlier decided to train 40 core group players - 32 have already been identified - under the "Preparation of Indian Teams for Commonwealth Games, 2010" scheme.

Four Indian coaches, who would work with Constantini are Kamlesh Mehta, Manjit Dua, Bhawani Mukerjee and Mantu Ghosh.

Sports Minister wants timely help for CWG athletes

Sports Minister MS Gill has asked the national federations to quickly settle contracts with coaches and ensure timely availability of sports and support equipment for the benefit of athletes undergoing training for the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

The directions were given after a review meeting of the progress of the 'Scheme for Preparation of Teams for Commonwealth Games' and and identification of steps required to further improve the working of this Scheme.

On the basis of feedback received during the meeting, which was attended by office bearers of different federations, officers of Sports Authority of India and Indian Olympic Association, several steps were identified to make the Scheme work more efficiently.

"The Sports Minister has given direction for ensuring that sports and support equipment and consumables are made available in time, contracts with coaches are settled expeditiously, progress of the Scheme be monitored closely and kits to sports persons coming to camps be given without any delay," a release from the Ministry said on Wednesday.

"It was also decided to make available training facilities at non-SAI venues in certain locations like Chennai for Swimming, Hyderabad for Badminton, Pune for Tennis and Shooting etc," it said.

Under the Scheme, which would cost the Government Rs 678 crores, the selection process for identifying about 1300 elite players, in 17 disciplines, 250 coaches (both Indian and foreign), and about 80 supporting personnel (physiotherapists, psychologist, masseurs etc) has been completed.

These elite players will be fully funded by Government, for intensive training of 305 days, in a year, both within, and outside the country. They will also be provided state of art, equipments, training and greater exposure in domestic and international tournaments.

The players will be assessed at regular intervals, through pre-decided monitorable parameters, till their final selection for Commonwealth Games.

The coaching camps for the selected players have commenced at the various centers of Sports Authority of India.

Hiring Started for 2010 Commonwealth Games

The Commonwealth Games has raised hopes of the young professionals, who are rendered jobless due to the current economic slowdown.

Headhunters are targeting professionals across the board to meet the manpower needs of the Games.

Besides a good salary, the government is also offering job contract for two years. Headhunters, appointed by the government have started scouting for 1,000 professionals for 34 functional areas specified by the Games secretariat.

The organizing committee has appointed three headhunters ABC Consultants, MaFoi Management Consultants and a consortium of TeamLease and PeopleStrong for these jobs.

Headhunters have begun the recruiting process for about 1,000 jobs across all levels of senior, middle and junior management roles. A senior official in the organising committee, who did not wish to be identified, said that selected vendors have been appointed to suggest names and budgets for professionals that need to be recruited. “We have begun recruiting and interviews are being conducted for top posts,” he told.

The government has still not made the financial disclosure on salaries that are being offered, but the selected headhunters suggest that there is a lot of excitement to work, for the 2010 Commonwealth Games, across all sectors.

Shiv Agarwal, chief executive officer of ABC Consultants said that even though the job will be offered for two-year contract, industry professionals consider this as a fine opportunity to work for a truly global level sporting event.

Delhi University preparing for 2010 Commonwealth Games

As Delhi University is selected as the venue for Aquatics and Rugby events for the 2010 Commonwealth Games, the University has big plans to set up an advanced Aquatics complex and a coaching centre to groom the budding talents for the mega event.

According to the plans the complex will have four pools -- swimming pool, synchronized swimming pool, warm-up pool and diving pool, each equipped with a filtration plant and heating system. The diving pool will have lift for diving tower.

These pools will be developed, keeping in mind the world level standards and would have world class facilities. Various technical organizations have been consulted to effectively implement the plans. The department of Physical Education and Sports, Delhi University has been given the work of proper supervision and implementations. In addition to this, National Institute of Physical Education, Gwalior has also been contacted for providing their expertise in construction of the swimming facilities.

The Delhi University Administration has proposed and earmarked 20 acres of land for the construction of various pools, and got approval from the organizing committee of the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

The Aquatic Complex proposed would also have fitness centers, store rooms, a dope sample collection centre and medical centers

The existing pavilion building is also planned for renovation for Rugby

The Delhi University does not want to lag behind in the terms of preparing its students for the games .For this purpose, the University administration has requested Sports Authority of India to start an in-house coaching centre on the campus, where training on every type of games will be provided.

Infrastructure development for 2010 Commonwealth Games - 4

The reality on the ground shows the snail's pace of work


And this is the Aerial View of the Stadium


Source : http://www.skyscrapercity.com

Officials Expressed Concerns over Games Preparations

I have posted on a topic about Delhi to learn from Chinese preparation model, in which I have quoted that some officials are visiting China to learn about their preparation of Olympic Games, which would help us in making better preparations for 2010 Commonwealth Games. Now when they have returned lets see what their opinion on the topic is:

Indian sports officials visiting Beijing to study the arrangements for the Olympic Games are having serious doubts about whether Delhi would be ready to host the Commonwealth Games by 2010.
‘‘It is not merely a question of infrastructure. It is the quality of organization. The manner in which the Olympics are being conducted makes me wonder if we can handle the job in 2010,’’ a senior official connected with the Commonwealth Games said, and added: ‘‘The Chinese are simply excellent in both allocating and implementing tasks. We work through committees with everyone escaping responsibility.’’
Visiting sports officials are expected to influence the decision-making process concerning the Commonwealth Games based on their experience in Beijing. But some of them worry that their feedback might be cast aside because it may hurt vested interests.
‘‘The Chinese have used existing infrastructure like the Workers’ Stadium and built new facilities as well. I am wondering if it was wise to reconstruct Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium instead of building a new one,’’ another official said. The official felt that there was very little time left for the Commonwealth Games to make major changes in design and layout and said ongoing work was already behind schedule.
‘‘Besides Beijing, the Olympic Games are being held in four co-host cities — Tianjin, Qingdao, Hong Kong and Shanghai. Why can’t we too involve other Indian cities instead of organizing all events in Delhi, which may not be able to handle the load?’’ an official said. This would also take visitors from abroad across the country and boost tourism, he added.
‘‘The Chinese seem to have planned meticulously right down to every minute detail. We are nowhere near them,’’ he said. Even the process of observing and learning from Beijing should have started much earlier, the official said.
The manner in which nearly 200,000 volunteers have been trained and mobilized is another lesson to be learnt for the 2010 Games in Delhi, an official observed. Volunteers are playing a key role in Beijing and helping develop a sense of nationalism connected to hosting of the Olympic Games. ‘‘A sense of nationalism is essential for any country not only to host such an event,’’ the official said.

Source: Times of India News Paper Delhi Edition

Delhi to Learn from Chinese Preparation Model

Senior officials are visiting china to learn about the preparation for Beijing Olympics

Municipal Corporation of Delhi, populariliy known as MCD is sending around six of its senior officials to Beijing, China, to ‘study’ the preparations made by China for the Olympic Games. As 2010 Commonwealth Games has to be hosted in the city in 2010, Mayor Arti Mehra who visited Beijing and just returned India, said on Sunday that six senior officials, probably executive engineers would be sent to Beijing, china to study the model applied by the Chinese, which can help improve our preparations for the commonwealth game in 2010. But these officials would visit there only after the Olympic Games are over.

The civic agency would bear the traveling cost, which would be approximately Rs 3 lakhs, the accommodation would be provided by China, according to the mayor. As per official records, the civic agency has made no significant headway on ground with regard to most projects under it for Commonwealth Games. This track record notwithstanding, the Corporation now plans to send its officials to China to ‘learn lessons’ from the Chinese.
Mehra thrashed the officials and commented that they are giving importance to solving matters; instead they are much interested in blame-game.

According to the mayor “The beautification along roads, infrastructure development etc was impressive in Beijing and we should learn from them”. She has discussed with the MCD commissioner K S Mehra about sending a few MCD officials to Beijing and also to get in touch with the Chinese Olympic Association to take MCD officials around and show them preparations that were made during the Games. Since the Association is presently busy with the Olympics games, MCD officials will be sent only after the Beijing Olympic Games are over.

The return ticket to Beijing costs around Rs 45,000 and the MCD will give them a daily allowance of around Rs 1,600 or more.
Mehra said there is need to fast track projects to ensure that everything is in place by then. Mehra herself has been to Beijing as part of the “Observer Programme” which was conducted by the organizing committee of the 2010 Commonwealth Games with other senior government functionaries.

Enthusiastic preparation for Commonwealth Youth Games

The preparation is on full swing for the Commonwealth Youth Games which has to begin from 12 October 2008 in Pune, Maharashtra. This is the third Commonwealth Youth Games.

The Youth Baton Relay ceremony will be done in New Delhi and will be flagged off from the North Campus of the Delhi University on 1st of August 2008 and will reach Pune on the inaugural of day of the event on 12^th of October. In this duration the Youth baton will tour 9 states and 199 cities. The relay will cover a very long distance of around 8000 kilometers and will be carried by 6000 selected sports person. The baton will be escorted from Delhi to Pune by a team consisting of 80 crew members and 26 vehicles.

A total number of 1300 athletes aged below 18 years from all the 71 Commonwealth nations will participate in 9 disciplines at the Shiv Chhatrapati Sports City, Balewadi, in Pune.There would be 350 officials for the proper functioning of the event. The event will conclude on 18^th of October.

After hosting successfully the Commonwealth Youth Games will help hosting a successful Commonwealth Games in 2010 and this will increase country’s chances to bid for the Olympics Games.