With just ninety-six days remaining for the kickstart to Commonwealth Games, the Delhi police has put in place a plan for the security during the mega sports event. While, there will be tight security at the Major Dhyan Chand and Talkatora stadiums, sources have confirmed that even areas near Delhi University (DU) campus and the Jamia Millia Islamia will have high security arrangements.

While the city is all set to host the Commonwealth Games, the visitors from different countries will flock budget hotels in cities of Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.

An alleged urban area commander of the CPI (Maoist) was arrested by a special team of the Uttar Pradesh police from the Ramesh Nagar area of west Delhi. The alleged Maoist, Varanasi, was held from the Ramesh Nagar Metro station on June 16 around 7 pm while he was trying to board the Metro train to Connaught Place Metro station, confirmed a reliable source in the Uttar Pradesh police.

A day after the Delhi government’s transport department assured hikes in taxi and autorickshaw fares, the commuters in Delhi might also have to pay more for Blueline bus tickets.

The city is likely to face a shortage of fire-tenders and rescue workers in the month of October as over 650 firemen and 50 of the 250 fire tenders will be deployed at various Commonwealth Games sites.

Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit’s special drive to check pollution for the upcoming Commonwealth Games is not enough for a few Canadian athletes who have chosen to walkout from the Games.

The Commonwealth Games Organising Committee, chaired by Mr Suresh Kalmadi, will not be bothered by the recent hike in road tax and VAT for buying vehicles. The committee on Wednesday received official approval from the Delhi government to buy 2,000 Scorpio SUVs without paying the seven per cent road tax and 12.5 per cent VAT on every vehicle.

Prior to sending the file on the mercy plea of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru, the Delhi government had got in touch with the Jammu and Kashmir government on the law-and-order situation that might follow in the wake of the government taking any decision on Afzal’s petition.

It appears that the Commonwealth Games weighed heavily on the city government which wanted to delay the mercy petition plea of the Parliament attack convict, Afzal Guru, till the mega sporting event was over. Delhi government sources said, they did not want to take any chance on the smooth organisation of the Commonwealth Games, scheduled for October 2010.

Peeved over “questioning” of the media on the Afzal Guru mercy plea issue, Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit on Wednesday cracked a gag order against the media by restricting its entry in the city government headquarters.