NEW DELHI: The Commonwealth Games are in jeopardy less than two weeks before the opening ceremony.
Severe delays in the completion of the athletes’ village led Commonwealth Games Federation president Michael Fennell to contact the Indian government Tuesday and urge them to finish work on the accommodation – which many have described as “unlivable” – in time for the October 3-14 games.
“Many nations that have already sent their advanced parties to set up within the village have made it abundantly clear that, as of the afternoon of September 20th, the Commonwealth Games Village is seriously compromised,” Fennell said in a statement.
“The CGF has asked the Cabinet Secretary to immediately deploy the necessary resources to fix all the outstanding issues to an acceptable level.”
The athletes’ village is due to open to the first 7,000 athletes and officials on Thursday. The Times of India newspaper reported that only 18 of 34 residential towers at the village are complete.
New Zealand team manager Dave Currie said the games may not go ahead.
“In the time frame that is left, unless there is tremendous effort and energy and problem-solving ability to get it done, it’s going to be extremely hard to get across the line,” Currie told New Zealand radio network newstalkZB. “If the village is not ready and athletes can’t come, obviously the implications of that are that (the event) is not going to happen.”
Currie said New Zealand would consult with other countries before making a final decision on whether it will take part in the games.
“That’s not a decision that we’ll make (alone), but there are some realities,” he said.
New Zealand Prime Minister John Key also weighed in.
“The areas (of concern) aren’t insurmountable although there are real concerns about whether they can be achieved in the timeframe,” he said, adding that it was “unlikely that New Zealand would make a call that other countries weren’t prepared to make.”
The build-up to the Commonwealth Games has been plagued by problems with construction of venues and infrastructure falling behind schedule, causing concern over the safety and quality of the buildings and speculation of corruption in the awarding of contracts and structural compliance certificates.
But the delays in construction have been overshadowed more recently by safety concerns, heightened on the weekend after two unidentified gunmen on a motorcycle shot and wounded two tourists near the Jama Masjid, one of India’s biggest mosques.
Other countries also voiced concern about the athletes’ village.
Commonwealth Games Scotland said the area allocated to the team was “unsafe and unfit for human habitation,” while Commonwealth Games England said “there is a lot to be done in the village and this needs to be done with some urgency so that it is ready for the arrival of our first athletes on Friday.”
Australia’s chef de mission, retired marathon runner Steve Moneghetti, said that Indian organizers “have got two days to do what’s probably going to take about two weeks.”
Fennell said advance parties from the international Commonwealth Games Associations had been impressed with the international zone and main dining area within the village, but the condition of the residential zone shocked the majority of them.
“Despite (the CGAs) attempts to work with the organizing committee in a constructive manner since arriving on Sept. 15, significant operational matters remain unaddressed,” Fennell said. “The problems are arising because deadlines for the completion of the village have been consistently pushed out. Now, the high security around the site, while vital, is slowing progress and complicating solutions.”
CGF chief executive Mike Hooper said organizers had not lived up to promises on delivery dates.
“The conditions continued to be appalling and so we felt the matter needed to be elevated. That is why our chairman spoke to top Indian government officials,” Hooper said Tuesday in New Delhi. “Organizing committee chairman Suresh Kalmadi now tells me that the cabinet secretary took a round of the village and assured that everything possible would be done.”
Hooper said newspaper reports of human excrement around the village were true.
British bookmaker William Hill i offering 5-1 odds that the games will fail to go ahead as scheduled, and 2-1 that either England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland will pull out.
“Environment and accommodation are key components in the preparations of athletes. Should reports from Delhi be true, it is understandable why governing bodies would want to stay away,” Hill spokesman Joe Crilly said.