Youngsters Took Great interest in volunteer program for 2010 CWG

The event was to celebrate the induction of volunteers to the Commonwealth Games 2010. However, onlookers would have been forgiven for thinking it was to felicitate the Organizing Committee (OC). As hundreds of volunteers turned up for registration at the OC offices on Friday on the eve of International Volunteers Day, many were disappointed they couldn’t get a chance to interact with those already volunteering.

‘‘It would have been nice to get an idea of what the volunteer programme is about as well as what the OC is looking for from the volunteers themselves,’’ said Pallavi Singh wistfully. Singh’s friend Sonali Sharma felt that the selected volunteers should’ve been introduced by the OC, so that registrants could interact with them later. Singh, who had come with her college mates, though was thrilled to see Abhinav Bindra, the chief guest at the occasion.

It was however, the opportunity to be part of the CWG ‘family’ that seemed to be the driving passion for all those who had come for registration. Said Zoya Sodhi, a final year student from Kamala Nehru College, ‘‘It is an opportunity to be part of history. I’m very excited and am hoping I’ll get through into the programme.’’ Much like Sodhi, Singh too had hopes of making it to the volunteer programme. ‘‘We’ll get a chance to meet new people and interact with international sportspersons: who wouldn’t want that,’’ said the geography (H) student.

It wasn’t just the college students though who had dreams in their eyes at the venue. Sushma Arya, a 55-year old self-confessed traveler, said she wanted to sign up so that she could ‘‘serve her country’’. ‘‘I’ve been thinking about it for a long time, and this seemed the perfect opportunity. My family’s equally excited, though they couldn’t come to register themselves,’’ said Arya, who is the eldest member of her family. The good news for Delhiites looking to volunteer for the Delhi Games 2010 though is that registration is now available online, through a dedicated portal by the OC (www.cwgdelhi2010.org). The OC is looking at inducting about 30,000 volunteers, sourced from various agencies including the Delhi government, the tourism and sports ministries as well as the SAI and NCC.

Speaking at the occasion, secretary, ministry of sports, Sindhushree Khullar, summed up the passion of those who had come for registration by calling them the ‘‘heart’’ of the Delhi Games 2010. Suresh Kalmadi, chairperson, OC, was also present at the event. The volunteers have been categorized into different groups, from senior citizens to artists and professionals. The volunteer programme will be going on through the next few months in the run-up to the Delhi Games 2010.