General Association of National Sports Federations chief V.K. Malhotra on Friday criticised sports minister M.S. Gill for blaming national federations for the delay in completion of Commonwealth Games venues, saying it is the government which is responsible for the "mess and chaos".
"It is a shocking and unacceptable observation of sports minister M.S. Gill. The sports and urban development ministries are responsible for this mess and chaos. The federations were hardly consulted by the government when it went for massive constructions," he said here.
However, Mr Malhotra said despite the minister's comments, GANSF was willing to cooperate with the government agencies for the successful conduct of the Games.
"For us the Games are matter of national pride but Mr Gill seems to treat it as a party affair," he said.
Just three weeks are left for the Games but the sprucing up of the city is far from complete and Malhotra said instead of seeking cooperation from sports federations in finishing the work, Gill was trying to start a blame game.
Mr Malhotra, who is also the president of Archery Association of India (AAI), said the Prime Minister and Gill himself have time and again told the media that stadiums and all other infrastructure should have been ready at least a year ago.
"All the agencies involved in the construction of the infrastructure — DDA, PWD, CPWD — belong to the government while the urban development ministry along with sports ministry were monitoring the progress. Sports federations hardly figure in their scheme of things," he said.
"The city is in the mess, Connaught Place and several other areas are dugged out for the benefit of the contractors and middle men. Are sports federations responsible for this chaos also?" he asked.
He said even the preparation of the athletes for the Games is in disarray which has led to a large number of players failing the dope test. "Coaching and training of all sportspersons is done in the government-run Sports Authority of India centres. Practically all coaches are their employees. If players are found guilty, the coaches and officials involved in their training are equally responsible," he said.