{"id":13204,"date":"2010-09-05T13:30:35","date_gmt":"2010-09-05T12:30:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.deinayurveda.net\/wordpress\/?p=13204"},"modified":"2010-09-05T15:20:04","modified_gmt":"2010-09-05T14:20:04","slug":"2010-commonwealth-games-multisport-event","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.deinayurveda.net\/wordpress\/2010\/09\/2010-commonwealth-games-multisport-event\/","title":{"rendered":"2010 Commonwealth Games Multi Event"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"commonwealth-games-2010-logo-mascot-shera\"\"CWGGreenGamesLogo\"<\/p>\n

www.iaia.org<\/span><\/span><\/span>\u00a0 (IAIA 11)<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

www.cwgdelhi2010.org<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

www.transparency.org<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a> <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

www.business-humanrights.org<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

The Commonwealth Games is a multinational, multi-sport event which features competitions involving thousands of elite athletes from members of the Commonwealth of Nations. Organised every four years, they are the third-largest multi-sport event in the world, after the Summer Olympic Games and the Asian Games. As well as many Olympic sports, the Games also include some sports that are played mainly in Commonwealth countries, such as lawn bowls, rugby sevens and netball. The Games are overseen by the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF), which also controls the sporting programme and selects the host cities. The host city is selected from across the Commonwealth, with eighteen cities in seven countries having hosted it. Click here<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

The 2010 Commonwealth Games are the nineteenth Commonwealth Games, and the ninth to be held under that name. The Games are scheduled to be held in Delhi, India between 3 October and 14 October 2010. The games will be the largest multi-sport event conducted to date in Delhi and India generally, which has previously hosted the Asian Games in 1951 and 1982. The opening ceremony is scheduled to take place at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Delhi. It will also be the first time the Commonwealth Games will be held in India and the second time the event has been held in Asia (after 1998 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia). <\/span>FULL ARTICLE CLICK HERE<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The organisation was beset by delays:<\/strong> in January 2010 , the Indian Olympic Association vice-chairman Raja Randhir Singh expressed concern that Delhi was not up to speed in forming and organising its games committee and, following a 2009 Indian Government report showing two thirds of venues were behind schedule, Commonwealth Games Federation president Mike Fennell stated that the slow progress of preparations represented a serious risk to the event. In spite of delays and the corruption casses on the organisors, commentators stated that they are confident that India will successfully host the games and do so on time.<\/span><\/p>\n

Costs <\/strong>– Indira Gandhi International Airport, DelhiThe total budget estimated for hosting the Games is US$ 1.6 billion and this amount excludes non-sports-related infrastructure development in the city like airports, roads and other structures. This will likely make the 2010 Commonwealth Games the most expensive Commonwealth Games ever being larger than the previous games in Melbourne 2006 (approx. US$ 1.1 billion).<\/span><\/p>\n

Green Games – <\/strong><\/span>Logo for the Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games being recognised as the first ever „Green Commonwealth Games“ <\/strong>The organisers signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the United Nations Environment Programme to show the intention to host a „sustainable games“<\/strong> and to take the environment into consideration when constructing and renovating venues. Thyagaraj Stadium is intended to be a key example of environmentally-considered construction.<\/span><\/p>\n

In opposition to this intention, a number of environmental controversies arose and the adverse ecological impact of various aspects of the games have been protested by city residents.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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The official song of the 2010 Commonwealth Games „Jiyo Utho Badho Jeeto“ was composed and performed by the Indian musician A. R. Rahman. The song’s title is based on the slogan of the games, „Come out and play“. The song is penned by Mehboob in Hindi with a sprinkling of English words. It was released on 28 August 2010.<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Other preparation<\/strong> – In preparation for an influx of English-speaking tourists for the Games, the Delhi government is implementing a program to teach English, and the necessary skills for serving tourists, to key workers \u2013 such as cab drivers, security workers, waiters, porters, and service staff. In the two years prior to the Games 2,000 drivers were taught English. The program aims to teach 1,000 people English per month in the hope of reaching all key workers by March 2010. In addition to Delhi, the Indian Government plans to expand the program to teach people in local tourist destinations in other parts of India.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Criticism and controversies – Delays<\/strong> – In September 2009, Commonwealth Games federation chief Mike Fennell reported that the games were at risk of falling behind schedule and that it was „reasonable to conclude that the current situation poses a serious risk to the Commonwealth Games in 2010“. A report by the Indian Government released several months prior found that construction work on 13 out of the 19 sports venues was behind schedule.The Chief of the Indian Olympic Association Randhir Singh has also called expressed his concerns regarding the current state of affairs. Singh has called for the revamp of the games‘ organizing committees commenting that India now has to „retrieve the games“. Other Indian officials have also expressed dismay at the ongoing delays but they have stated that they are confident that India will successfully host the games and do so on time. As the Times of India reports, all CWG projects were to be completed by May 2009 and the last year should have been kept for trial runs. The newspaper further reports that the first stadium was handed over for trial runs in July 2010 only. To put the delays in perspective, Beijing National Stadium was completed much ahead of schedule for the 2008 Summer Olympics, while the venues for 2012 Summer Olympics in London are scheduled to be delivered one year before the games and the construction of the venues is on track.<\/span><\/p>\n

There are also allegations of wide spread corruption<\/strong> in various aspects of organising the games including procurement and awarding contracts for constructing the game venues.The Commonwealth Games Organizing Committee on 5th Aug 2010 suspended T S Darbari (joint director in the organising committee) and Sanjay Mahendroo (deputy director general in the organising committee) following the report of the three-member panel which was probing the financial irregularities related to the Queen’s Baton Relay. Also Organizing Committee treasurer Anil Khanna resigned from the post in the wake of allegations that his son’s firm had secured a contract for laying synthetic courts at a tennis stadium.<\/span><\/p>\n

Labour Violations<\/strong> – Campaigners in India have accused the organisers of enormous and systematic violations of labour laws at construction sites. Human Rights Law Network reports that independent investigations have discovered more than 70 cases where workers have died in accidents at construction sites since work began. Although official numbers have not been released, it is estimated that over 415,000 contract daily wage workers are working on Games projects<\/span><\/p>\n

Slum eviction and no-beggar-zones<\/strong> -A much-quoted report by the Housing and Land Rights Network (HLRN)<\/strong> \u2013 an arm of the Habitat International Coalition \u2013 has brought to light some worrying social and environmental consequences <\/strong>of the event. Based on a Right to Information (RTI) application filed for the study and statements by civil society groups, it has discovered that \u2018no tolerance zones\u2019 for \u2018beggars\u2019 are being used in Delhi, and that the city has arbitrarily arrested homeless citizens under the Bombay Prevention of Begging Act 1959. Furthermore, over 100,000 families have already been evicted in order to make space for CWG-related projects, and a further 30,000 to 40,000 were slated for eviction and \u2018relocation\u2019<\/strong> at the time of the report\u2019s publication.<\/span><\/p>\n

Urban Change<\/strong> – Mitu Sengupta, an academic, points out that there is a \u201ctradition of using \u2018urban spectacles\u2019 such as the Olympics and World\u2019s Fairs to enhance a city\u2019s global recognition, image and status, and to push through controversial policy reforms that might otherwise linger in the pending file for years (it is easier to undercut local opposition under the pressure of a fixed deadline and the international spotlight).\u201d She writes that the reforms involved are, all too often \u201cthe invention of an affluent, globally connected minority that is relatively detached from local conditions and the local population.\u201d The 2010 Commonwealth Games, she says, are being used to invigorate an elite-driven program of urban transformation\u201d that centers on privatization, securitization, and the construction of \u201cmonuments to vanity.\u201d She concludes that \u201cthe lure of national prestige, an immovable deadline and, as of late, the fear of national embarrassment\u201d have helped undermine the urban social movements and independent activists that typically resist this agenda.<\/span><\/p>\n

Calls for boycott<\/strong> – <\/span>Amid allegations of blatant corruption, shoddy construction work at venues and security concerns for participating athletes, the 2010 Commonwealth games has faced numerous boycott calls from individuals in India, England and Australia. Boycott calls in India – <\/strong><\/span>Other celebrities who followed Aiyer’s comments in expressing a call for boycott include Indian spin legend Bishan Singh Bedi and bestselling Indian author Chetan Bhagat. Bedi said the „CWG organizers have taken the country for a ride“ and urged international athletes to boycott the „embarrassing“ Delhi games. Boycott calls outside India – <\/strong><\/span>Considering the potential impact of a terror threat and other security concerns, rumors kept flying about a boycott of the Delhi Commonwealth games by major participating nations including Scotland, England and New Zealand.<\/span><\/p>\n