India's Commonwealth Games Mess

Newsweek article: http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2013182,00.html

Going off my comment to an earlier post, I found an article that talks specifically about the publicized mess India has made so far of the Commonwealth games, scheduled to start in Delhi on October 3rd. This is the largest international sporting event India has hosted and a report in July stated "the Commonwealth Games' infrastructure was hazardous to both athletes and spectators" due to corruption and sub-standard construction. Preparation for the games already cost the country $4.6 billion when the original estimate was only $500 million.

As I previously commented, I couldn't help comparing this to when Chicago prepared for the Olympic bid. While an excessive amount of money was spent getting the city in shape for the bid, areas that were off the route of the Olympic committee suffered from potholes and other infrastructure problems left unsolved because the funds were being used elsewhere. The article mentions how between monsoons and the "upgrading of roads" for the Commonwealth games more than 20 roads have caved in. Another comparison comes from the contracting for the games which has scary similarities to some of the news stories regarding Chicago's contractors. A report includes that $89 (yes, US dollars) was spent on 1 roll of toilet paper, among other high priced items. India is currently in damage control mode trying to salvage the Commonwealth games. I wish them the best as every country battles their own issues with hosting international sporting event, however I for one do not plan to set foot in Delhi in its current state.