The commonwealth games 2010: India's grand failure?

[Vindekarr]

The commonwealth games of this years have been an unmitigated disaster thus far,

 

Many are contemplating either a political boycott or simply not showing up for their own safety.

 

From the against camp: The simple fact of the matter is that the hosts have failed. Failed to meet requirements not only for a massive international event, but failed on security, failed on planning, failed on the simple requirements for human habitation. The athetle's villiage is worse than a slum. They may aswell sleep outside, it would do their health less damage that's for sure.

 

Today pictures were leaked to the BBC that clearly shows an uninhabitable environment. In many you can see raw sewage leaking from between tiles, pools of urine going stale in the sun, and cracked pipes vomiting forth disease ridden untreated sewage onto public walkways and into athlete's homes. One such telling image pair shows firstly a bathroom that has seemingly been "painted" in a sickening mush of human waste mixed with urine.

 

In the bedroom next door, it's obvious that some sort of animal has been lving their, the footprints of a large animal, tracked across the sheets and floor in human and animal waste. http://news.ninemsn.com.au/glance/8016063/photos-of-games-village-leaked Make your own mind up-the brown stuff in the first few? it came out of a man.

 

As if that wasnt enough, several tourists have been shot by militants in the capital city, and a number of games related sctructures have collapsed shortly after being built. New Delhi will not be ready on time, and I hate to think how many people could die because of that.

 

From the for camp: It's a huge chance for India to prove to Asia and the world that it's go the ability to pull off an event of this magnitude. But more importantly it would send a huge and very positive message to other nations around asia and the world that it's not just the western bloc that can do this sort of stuff, which would in turn encourage others to expand and grow. And think about the athletes, they've been waiting for this for a loooong time, sending them a text to tell them they arent going is like giving them the pink slip, some of them will be too old to compete by next games.

 

For Or Against? Well Im against but in less abrasive terms, and I'd as always greatly value any opinions people here have to share.

[Burnagirl]

An extremely large portion of my friends are Indian and I can assure you that not one of them is impressed at all.

They view this as a major disaster with their reputation on the line.

I for one cannot understand how a nation like India who has had so much time to prepare for these games could #@$% around like they did.

The fact that Canada, New Zealand and Australia are thinking of giving the Commonwealth Games a miss is not surprising at all.

I think a Welsh competitor has already pulled out.

 

Like most South Africans I have family living in either New Zealand or Australia and the standards that are upheld and maintained in those

countries are standards that you can live your life by ensuring quality of life.

I can just imagine the horror when they saw the place they were supposed to live in ... disgusting.

 

Having said that, why on earth didnt the organisers of the games go and inspect the place on a regular basis like FIFA did here for the World Cup

Soccer ?

Therefore the Commonwealth Organisers should also shoulder the blame ...

 

Personaly speaking I feel that the Indian government handed out contracts to their family and friends (to get in on the deal), and to make some easy money.

They wasted time (a protracted contract means more money on site in many third world countries - ask me I know), and did a half a job with inferior quality

products and cheap labor.

 

What do you expect from a country where people are dying from starvation yet have more cattle than some countries have people ... confusion.

[Harbringe]

Well that's sewage backup caused by heavy rains ,I don't think that's an indicator they are incapable of hosting the games ,though they had better get that fixed and do something to make sure it doesn't back up again should it rain.People in New York know how this can happen after a heavy rainstorm.

[Vindekarr]

Well I guess we'll know soon enough.

 

There has been a further outbreak of dangerous diseases, as well as that, there is no way India can prepare these facilities and make them habitable in time. I really feel sorry for everyone involved, except perhaps the local authorities and the games commission, they're who's shoulders the blame directly falls on.

 

Personaly I dont think India needs to feel ashamed on a national level, but it does highlight a flawed government and a high level of corruption. I just hope this problem kills few enough people that they can learn from this.

[JimboUK]

It's not just the Commonwealth Games, their F1 track is just a few half built buildings in a sea of mud with only a year to get it finished.

[Maharg67]

India is in a mess but the current problems are just symptons of systematic weaknesses going way back of which corruption is but one and poverty another despite some changes.

 

But what is happening in India could not just cause problems for the host country but for the future of the Commonwealth Games. These problems are also an indicator of how the Commonwealth as an organisation has been losing importance over the decades. I was born in 1961 in Australia and in my childhood the Commonwealth of Nations was an often mentioned organisation that was considered very important for nations once belonging to the British Empire. From the British Empire we went to the British Commonwealth of Nations and then the Commonwealth of Nations. What now? I suspect we may be seeing the winding down of the organisation.

 

Many of the problems in India can be linked back to the British Empire period.

[ginnyfizz]

Many of the problems in India can be linked back to the British Empire period.

 

*Palms face* I wondered how long it would be before we heard that mouldy old chestnut. Put it away, it's got hairs on it. A bit like some of those mouldering Commonwealth athletes accommodation blocks that are awash with sewage, infested with rodents and other nasties, rife with dengue fever and probably yersinia pestis as well. But so far as I am aware, *shock horror" the disgusting buildings Were not erected during the British Raj!!!!!

 

Let's not turn this into a Brit-bashing thread, fashionable though that may be, and...

 

Let's not pretend that this is anything other than corruption amongst the officials and the Indian government - Vindekarr, for me you were right on the button with this comment

 

"Personaly I dont think India needs to feel ashamed on a national level, but it does highlight a flawed government and a high level of corruption. I just hope this problem kills few enough people that they can learn from this."

[Burnagirl]

Many of the problems in India can be linked back to the British Empire period.

 

 

Maharg, that's an old tune a lot of the former "colonies" like to sing ... it's always nice to remember that tune when they screw things up ... take Zimbabwe for instance ... they had over 20 years to sort

themselves out ... say no more ... India is no different.

It is with great regret that South Africa is going to the games ...

[Maharg67]

Many of the problems in India can be linked back to the British Empire period.

 

*Palms face* I wondered how long it would be before we heard that mouldy old chestnut. Put it away, it's got hairs on it. A bit like some of those mouldering Commonwealth athletes accommodation blocks that are awash with sewage, infested with rodents and other nasties, rife with dengue fever and probably yersinia pestis as well. But so far as I am aware, *shock horror" the disgusting buildings Were not erected during the British Raj!!!!!

 

Let's not turn this into a Brit-bashing thread, fashionable though that may be, and...

 

Let's not pretend that this is anything other than corruption amongst the officials and the Indian government - Vindekarr, for me you were right on the button with this comment

 

"Personaly I dont think India needs to feel ashamed on a national level, but it does highlight a flawed government and a high level of corruption. I just hope this problem kills few enough people that they can learn from this."

 

 

ginnyfizz, please reread what I said. I said that the problems could be linked back to the time of the British Empire. I did not say that they could be linked back 'just to the British'. There were many forces at play during that time of which the British were but one, though a major one.

 

Burnagirl, I say the same to you. I choose my words with care.

[Vindekarr]

That's enough.

 

Agree to disagree or get the Hel out of my thread. If you want to argue, to it elsewhere.

 

Look at it this way: I follow F-1 religiously, and I iknow just how well a determined country can band together it's forces and make a great track in a short time.

 

Look at Korea for example-they're new track has sprung up almost over night and is a wonderful classical race track. Spain made the now infamous Aragon in a very short period of time and with not nearly as much money as India has, but it's top quality and a helluva lot of fun for driver and spectator. Abu Dhabi isnt as good an example since it's got the budget of a planet, but just look at what they put together-and fast, one of the best, and most scenic tracks on the entire callender.

 

The trick is to blend tradition with new challenges. Korea's still un named track is traditional in the extreme, but boasts some quirks, Aragon is traditional as a circuit, but has a crazy long straight stretch, hills, and some monstrous corners. They werent built on a big budget compared to the C-Games 2010's, they were just national projects, but they're both very memorable and were built quickly and cheaply with a great deal of skill.

 

Neither was made by a particularly rich country compared to superpower India, but they knew exactly what to do: they hired experts to do design work, they hired the best contractors to do the building, and they hired riders and drivers to make sure that it actualy worked.

 

India doesnt seem to have done any of that from the ground view. If anything, they tried, but it looks to me like neglect destroyed this, and laziness. Laziness not cleaning, laziness not checking on everything, laziness thinking "ehh, we'll get it done". Corruption also must have a been a big factor, I cant see even an inexperienced host like India throwing such a disaster without corruption undermining it. The commonwealth games commity also shares a large part of the blame. Why did these people not check on progress? how did they let it get this bad? Did they accept bribes to ignore the dangerously bad work? Shameful.

 

It's a damn shame, if it had have worked, this would have sent a huge and positive message to the whole of Asia, but because of corporate greed and the failures of lazy men, it has simply been an embarrising failure.