Distorted map puts Games Federations on the mat

The Commonwealth Games Federation on Tuesday found itself in the eye of a storm for putting up a distorted map of India on its website.

The blunder came to light on the Republic Day, forcing the embarrassed officials of the federation to correct the map and apologise to the nation.

“It was a mistake and we apologise for it,” CEO Mike Hooper said.

The Indian map on http://www.thecgf.com showed some areas of Jammu and Kashmir and Gujarat as parts of Pakistan. The corrected version, uploaded within hours of a media storm, shows these areas as Indian territories.

Once the mistake came to light, the organisers of the 2010 Commonwealth Games claimed they had brought it to the CGF’s notice. “We have noticed it and told CGF officials about it. They have promised to get back to us,” Organising Committee secretary Lalit Bhanot said.

The run-up to the Games, which will be held here from October 3 to 14, has already seen a series of controversies, with the federation and the Organising Committee constantly at loggerheads over the pace of preparations.