Prime Minister Manmohan Singh took strong note of the “slippages” in preparations for the 19th Commonwealth Games, handing overriding powers in matters concerning the Games to a committee headed by Cabinet Secretary K.M. Chandrasekhar after a meeting here on Saturday.

The Cabinet Secretary in turn will be answerable to the Group of Ministers headed by urban development minister S. Jaipal Reddy, cutting into the Games Organising Committee’s powers.
On the day, the Prime Minister was briefed by the sports ministry, the ministry of urban development, the Delhi government and the CWG OC on the progress of Games preparations in terms of work assigned to them.
“The Prime Minister observed that there had been slippages in the time schedules of some of the construction works and deficiencies had also been observed in some of the works. He said that in the runup to the Games it was important to gain public confidence by instilling order and carrying out effective supervision of the preparation works,” a PMO statement said on Saturday.
The Prime Minister directed that thorough investigations should be held by the ministries concerned into complaints of “procedural and other irregularities” and “those found guilty should face severe and exemplary punishment”.
Dr Singh said all pending work should be completed expeditiously in a time-bound manner and decided to visit select Games venues in the last week of this month.
“The GoM set up for the CWG, headed by urban development minister S. Jaipal Reddy, was directed to meet immediately and frequently thereafter. The group was empowered to take all decisions necessary for the smooth conduct of the Games. The GoM will refer any matter that may require further consideration to the finance minister for a final decision,” the statement added.
The Prime Minister reviewed preparations for the October event at the meeting with the Union ministers concerned, Delhi Lt. Gov. Tejendra Khanna, chief minister Sheila Dikshit, OC chairman Suresh Kalmadi, Cabinet Secretary Chandrasekhar and home secretary G.K. Pillai against the backdrop of intense controversies surrounding the conduct of the event.
“The Committee of Secretaries will continue to review implementation and it will have the status of an Empowered Committee. It will have jurisdiction over matters relating to the OC,” the PMO said after the 90-minute meeting.
The OC, reeling under charges of mismanagement and corruption, was also handed a stern warning to speed up pending work. “The OC would take appropriate steps urgently to conclude all pending preparations. The senior management committee of the OC would meet daily and be chaired by the CEO in the absence of the chairman or vice-chairman of the OC. Additional senior and experienced officers from the government of India would be deputed as required,” the statement instructed.
Prime Minister Singh also instructed that details of progress should be regularly available to the public. The GoM will now ensure that timely and authentic information on the state of preparations and, in particular, on the remaining tasks at hand is released to the public.