Mehrullah eager to make another comeback

Fighting against time and adverse circumstances, Pakistan's star boxer and Asian Games gold medallist Mehrullah Lassi is still hoping to represent his country in this year's mega assignments of India and China and has rubbished the rumours that his career is over.

No, my career is not over yet. I want to play in the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games this year and I have been training hard under the supervision of Muhammad Siddiq Qambrani and as soon as I am match fit I will inform the Pakistan boxing authorities about my availability,the star boxer, who had got a record purse of Rs5 million for lifting gold in the 2002 Seoul Asian Games, told The News during a detailed chat on Wednesday.

Commonwealth Games are slated to be held in Delhi from October 3 to 14 while China will host the Asian Games from November 12 to 27.

A top official of the Pakistan Boxing Federation (PBF) informed the other day that Mehrullah's career is now over.

Last year, we gave him a chance to use his muscles in the World Championships, in Milan, but he could not prove himself and I believe that his career is now over, the official said.

Mehrullah along with his teammate Faisal Karim was slapped with a life ban by the PBF in 2006 after both were tested positive for using cannabis at Colombo's South Asian Games.

However, later it was converted into a two-year suspension as per International Boxing Association (AIBA) and World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) rules.

The two-year ban expired in August 2008 and after having gone through rigorous training both at home and abroad, the boxer was given a chance to play in the World Championships last September last year, but he failed to impress on his comeback, when he lost to Sandro Schaer of Germany 1-11 in his preliminary round bout.

If I did not find myself capable of playing at the international level this year then at least I will be able to prepare few youngsters, also including my two brothers Samiullah (Navy) and Sanaullah (KPT) to represent Pakistan in these major competitions,he said.

He admitted that he is facing problems to adapt himself to the new boxing rules, saying, unlike in the past, the game has become very fast and the boxers will have to be more accurate in both offense and defence.

I will face no problem in defence but it could take time, even a year, to bring my attack upto the modern standards, the boxer said.

Mehrullah is also not satisfied with the kind of training being imparted to the boxers during the national team camp.

How can I join the camp, as here the coaches don't provide training according to the temperament of the boxers and normally concentrate on only two or three boxers out of the 20 to 25 boys present at the camp, he said.

Mehrullah also met light welterweight world champion Amir Khan on the closing day of the Shaheed Benazir Bhutto International Boxing tournament here last week and informed him about his resolve that he is still there and is determined to represent Pakistan in the twin major assignments this year.

‘Avoid beef on menu to avoid trouble’

Former Bharatiya Janata Party chief Rajnath Singh on Wednesday asked Organising Committee of the Commonwealth Games to keep beef out of its menu to steer clear of agitations and “outrage or anger over this sensitive issue”.

Singh’s move was seen as in tandem with the Vishwa Hindu Parishad’s campaign against cow slaughtering in the Capital, particularly in East Delhi.

“The Commonwealth Games have become an important event where we should use every possible opportunity to highlight our cultural values and age-old traditions,” Singh said in letters to Organising Committee’s chairman Suresh Kalmadi and Delhi Lt Governor Tejinder Khanna.

“By removing beef from the menu card would not only empathise with the popular sentiment but also save the Games from agitations and other possible controversies.”

Singh drew attention to a “unanimous resolution” by the BJP-ruled Municipal Corporation of Delhi urging it to keep beef out of the Games to be held in October.

“We in the BJP believe that the guests should be given the best of facilities.”

No licence yet for city’s guesthouses

The Commonwealth Games are a little over eight months away but guesthouses meant to accommodate tourists are far from ready. The Capital is already short of 30,000 rooms.

Of the 1,400 guesthouse owners who applied for licences, 80 per cent have not been issued one, as admitted by the civic body on Wednesday in its standing committee meeting.

Guesthouses that came up in the city after February 2007 were not being issued licences. But the government had recently given directions to issue ad-hoc licences to them on yearly basis, keeping in mind the upcoming Commonwealth Games.

Despite this matter being taken up numerous times in the MCD's standing committee, nothing has been done so far.

“The Games are just round the corner and if licences are not issued in time, how will these owners renovate their places and make necessary arrangements? The executive wing needs to speed up the matter as licences are mandatory to run guesthouses,” said Ram Kishan Singhal, chairman of the MCD’s standing committee.

The MCD commissioner has admitted to the delay and assured that the “matter will be looked into”.

“We are going to boycott the Games as none of our demands have been met. We wanted regular licences but the civic agency is bent upon giving ad-hoc ones. This is not fair as once the Games are over, they can cancel the licence,” said Arun Gupta, general secretary of Delhi Hotel Sangh.

The guesthouse owners had also requested the government to release funds to upgrade their guesthouses.

“Not a single rupee has been given to us till date. Without financial help, how will we entertain the guests,” added Gupta.

CWG: Delhi seeks Rs 2000 crore additional fund from Centre

Facing severe fund crunch in view of huge spending on infrastructure projects linked to the Commonwealth Games, Delhi government today sought an additional Rs 2,000 crore from the Centre.

Placing the demand before Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Delhi Finance Minister A K Walia said the city Government needs the additional allocation for the preparation of the sporting event.

"I have said we need at least Rs 2,000 crore.... This year we got about Rs 1,000 crore for Commonwealth Games and some money from JNNURM," Walia told reporters after a pre-Budget interaction with Mukherjee.

The government has made investments to the tune of Rs 15,000 crore to improve infrastructure ahead of the upcoming Commonwealth Games.

The Government is facing financial crisis as it had reported a fall of over Rs 1,300 crore in tax revenue collection in the last fiscal due to the economic downturn.

The tax collection has improved this year as the government collected a total tax revenue of Rs 8394.2 crore in the first eight months of 2009-10, which is an increase of 3.4 per cent comparing to the corresponding period of the last fiscal.

Asked about preparation for the Commonwealth Games, Walia said Government will complete all the projects on time.

"We are satisfied with progress of work. All the projects will be completed much before commencement of the event," he said.

In view of financial constraints of the city government, the Centre had granted a plan allocation of Rs 2,435.68 crore to it in the Union Budget, which was an increase of Rs 1,673 crore compared to year 2007-08.

The Delhi government, in its budget, had earmarked Rs 2,105 crore for the financial year 2009-10 for projects related to the Games.

The city Government had withdrawn subsidy to certain categories of power consumers, increased bus fare and hiked water tariff last year in view of its financial constraints.

The Government had also increased VAT on 120 items to improve its financial resources which will come into effect from tomorrow.

Athletics: Tommo off to Delhi

Long jumper Chris Tomlinson plans to compete at the Commonwealth Games in Delhi in October.

The England team are not set to make their final decision on their participation in the Games until October due to reports of security concerns.

Paula Radcliffe and Jessica Ennis have already announced they will not take part, but due to sporting reasons rather than security worries.

However Tomlinson, whose British record was beaten by one centimetre with a jump of 8.30metres by Greg Rutherford at last year's World Championships in Berlin, has every intention of going to India.

Fully focused

"Yes, I would definitely like to be competing in the Commonwealth Games," he said. "I am fully focused on going to the Commonwealth Games.

"Equally, I am aware if I am going to do that I've got to make sure I don't tire myself out at the early stages of the season.

"The season is a bit more of a marathon than a sprint and I'll ease my way into competition."

Christine Ohuruogu had announced on Tuesday that she would be defending her Commonwealth 400m title in Delhi.

MCD to get Rs 502 crore; nod for Rs 1436 crore JNNURM projects

As Delhi prepares to host the Commonwealth Games this year, the MCD today said the Central government has sanctioned projects costing Rs 1436.32 crore for infrastructure development in the city under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission.

Chairman of MCD's Standing Committee Ram Kishan Singhal said the work on the projects could be completed by eight months to one year.

Among the projects are those related to multi-level underground parking lots, improvement and strengthening of roads, construction of grade-separator, foot-over-bridges and re-modelling of drains.

Officials said of the amount, 35 per cent will be funded by the Centre and 15 per cent by Delhi government. This means MCD is set to get 502.7 crore from the Centre for the schemes, which will come as a relief to the cash-strapped civic body.

Singhal said some key projects relate to development of 16 multilevel underground unconventional parking sites at various locations. The provision for total number of cars to be parked is 5443.

Covering of nallah in Nauroji Nagar from Africa Avenue to Ring Road for providing parking or road cum parking, covering of nallah in Press Enclave road for parking or road cum parking, construction of grade separator at intersection of Shankar Road and Upper Ridge Road are some of the other projects, he said.

Rajnath to LG: Beef be removed from CW Games menu

Senior BJP leader and former party president Rajnath Singh today urged Delhi Lt Governor Tejender Khanna that the Organising Committee of the forthcoming Commonwealth Games should remove beef from the games' menu and attenuate any possibility of outrage or anger over the issue.

In a letter to the Lt Governor, copies of which were made available to the media, Mr Singh also drew his attention to a resolution adopted by the MCD to keep beef out of the menu for the Games event scheduled for October this year. The resolution reflected the cultural and religious sentiments of the majority of people living in Delhi.

Cow was considered sacred in the country and even the founding fathers of the Constitution had advocated a ban on cow slaughter in Article 48, he asserted.

By removing beef from the menu, the Organising Committee would not only empathise with the popular sentiment, but also save the Commonwealth Games from agitations and other possible controversies, Mr Singh said. ''We at BJP beleive that the guests and participants coming to Delhi for the Games should be given the best of facilities and welcomed with warm hospitality but it does not mean we should ignore the sentiments of our own people,'' he reasoned.

Delhi 2010: India's fight to assure athletes the Commonwealth Games are safe

As the lead-up to the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi begins, so too do the inevitable questions about security, terrorism and the posturing about attendance.

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Delhi shouldn’t feel victimised; this happens before nearly every major sporting event on the global calendar.

Towards the end of December, 2009, rumours were rife that England were considering withdrawing their team from the games. Officials, of course, dispelled these rumours, and Ann Hogbin, General Manager of the England team, reiterated a “strong intention” for England to participate - hardly an unequivocal statement.

The athletes, however, are finding other excuses not to turn up in October. Whether it’s the chance of tummy bugs, the proximity to World Championship events in cycling or gymnastics, European athletics championships or just training for the London 2012 Olympics, the excuses are a bit transparent.

The security issues surrounding Delhi 2010 are complex, to say the least. There is a lot of hard work going into preparations, but there will always be those who have doubts.

When one of those with concerns is the Commissioner of the English Metropolitan Police, the concerns need to be taken seriously.

A big part of the issue is perception. There is a consistent reference to the sub-continent – a region that includes Pakistan. While India has its problems with terrorism, they pale next to those in Pakistan.

Despite this, the atrocities in Mumbai in 2008 and the 2009 decision to hold the Indian Premier League tournament in South Africa for security reasons, weigh heavily on the mind of those who have expressed reservations.

While the main reason for the IPL decision was a refusal of the central government to provide protection for the tournament – something that would not be an issue for the Commonwealth Games - it feeds the perception that India is a dangerous place.

Now Australian athletes are expressing concerns over their safety. The final decision on participation has been left to individual athletes and although no-one to date has come out and said they definitely won’t go, swimmer and part-time hitman Nick D’Arcy has put up his hand as a certain starter should he be selected. I’m sure that there’s a line in there somewhere, but better not to go there.

The problem with any mention of an Aussie boycott is that with current tensions between India and Australia over the terrible attacks on Indian students in Melbourne, any move to pull out could lead to an international incident.

But, at the end of the day, it’s the Commonwealth Games that we’re talking about - the festival of bland; a celebration of mediocrity.

It is an event almost entirely without relevance on the international sporting calendar – a sentiment underscored by Usain Bolt’s decision to “give the Games a miss” to prepare for the 2011 World Championships and London Olympics.

In a risk-reward analysis, it’s hard to imagine competing at the Commonwealth Games coming out on top, unless safety is completely guaranteed.

On the other hand, posturing about security and preparedness always haunt the lead-up to meets of this kind.

Before the Athens Olympics in 2004, there was a consensus that none of the stadiums would be complete and if, by some miracle, they were, then the local infrastructure wouldn’t cope with influx of athletes and visitors. Or al-Qaeda would kill everyone who turned up. Sound familiar?

The stakes are way too high for India for them to allow anything to affect the smooth execution of the games.

India is forging a new position on the world stage, particularly in the wake of the Copenhagen climate-change love-in. There is no way that they will allow terrorists to embarrass them on a large-scale, if irrelevant, event such as the Commonwealth Games.

It’s not hard to see Delhi 2010 as a practice run for an Indian Olympic bid at some point in the future, even though it has apparently been ruled out for 2020.

A major incident or failure would put paid to any chances of success but, more importantly, it would be another sporting tragedy that the world can do without.

Let’s wish the organizers all the luck they need.

Ensure night shelter for Delhi’s homeless, court tells MCD

Slamming the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) for being insensitive, the Delhi High Court Wednesday asked it to provide shelter to homeless people whose night refuge was demolished by the civic agency despite the chilling winter.

A division bench of Justice B.D. Ahmed and Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw said, ‘We do not expect any modern civilised society to allow its people to die, whether it is Commonwealth Games or any other thing. This trend cannot be allowed.’

It was referring to a temporary night shelter that was removed by the MCD Dec 22 as part of its beautification drive for the Commonwealth Games later this year.

Not satisfied with the MCD counsel’s submission that they have 27 night shelters, apart from the 16 run by the Delhi government, the bench said, ‘The present accommodation is insufficient.’

It directed the MCD to make proper arrangements so that ‘at least 150 people can be accommodated at one night shelter’.

It took note of the fact that another man had died after the night shelter on west Delhi’s Pusa Road, where he stayed, was demolished by the MCD Dec 22. The court said, ‘It is the prime responsibility of the state to provide the homeless a shelter and we are reminding them of the same and it should be ensured that this will be followed in letter and spirit.’

The court directed the MCD to make sure that no eviction would take place until an alternative arrangement for the homeless was provided and file a detailed compliance report by Jan 19.

The court was hearing a suo motu case based on a newspaper report highlighting the plight of people rendered homeless after the MCD demolished the structure.

The MCD had submitted that strict action was taken as people had encroached upon land and did not vacate despite several warnings.

As the temperatures in the city dipped and biting cold set in, the move impacted the many homeless who used to take refuge in the shelter.

Delhi has 40 night shelters – 27 run by the MCD and 15 temporary structures run by the Delhi government – for roughly 100,000 homeless people.

Delhi demands Rs 2,000 cr from Centre for CWG

The Delhi government today demanded Rs 2,000 crore from the Centre for the preparation of the Commonwealth Games (CWG) that is scheduled to be held in the National Capital from October 3-14.

"I have said we need at least Rs 2,000 crore.... This year, we got about Rs 1,000 crore for CWG and some money from JNNURM," Delhi Finance Minister A K Walia told reporters after a pre-Budget interaction with Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee.

He said the preparation for CWG is going on at a satisfactory pace.

Road show in Johannesburg promotes 2010 Commonwealth Games

In an effort to promote the 2010 Commonwealth Games which will take place in Delhi Oct 3-14, the ministry of tourism organised a road show in Johannesburg coinciding with the relay of the Queen’s baton there.

The event which took place Tuesday saw 10 double-decker buses with images of the Incredible India campaign being flagged off by the South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, M. Mashabane and the Consul General of India, Vikram Doraiswamy, along with T.S. Darbari, joint director general of the Commonwealth Games Organising Committee.

While the event was followed by presentations of the Incredible India campaign and the Commonwealth Games with a generous dose of Indian music and dance, the main highlight of the evening was a dinner in which cuisine representing various regions of India were laid out.

More than 200 people belonging to a cross-section of the African travel and trade industry attended the event.

Athletes Commonwealth Games concern

AUSTRALIA'S swim stars say they fear for the safety of their family and friends at New Delhi's Commonwealth Games.

The spotlight on security concerns surrounding the October Games in India has intensified after a leading security consultant warned athletes would be at risk of terror attacks.

While athletes contacted by the Herald Sun yesterday said they would trust the advice of team security advisers, ensuring that their family and friends would be safe was a major concern.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade's travel advice for India is to proceed with a "high degree of caution".

Olympic champion Leisel Jones said she would follow official recommendations and trusted the team would not be sent into danger.

But Jones said her "biggest concern" was how safe her mother, Rosemary, would be in public streets and hotels.

"It's as safe as houses in those villages, there is security at every single gate and screenings that you go through," Jones said yesterday.

"We are at least safe, but (family) may not be and you would have to take that into account. If family were thinking of going over, you might recommend that they didn't."

World champion breaststroker Brenton Rickard was confident security staff would make the right decisions for the team.

"You are going to be more concerned for your friends and family coming to watch that have to be out in public places that are less secure than the village and our actual facilities," he said.

Rickard's mother Collette, who heads the Parents Of Our Swimmers group, said there was concern among the parents for spectator safety.

Rickard said she would seek security advice from Swimming Australia and the Australian Commonwealth Games Association.

"I think everyone is reasonably hopeful that between the Indian Commonwealth Games people and the Australian Commonwealth Games people they can sort out the security for the swimmers," she said.

"It's for anyone who goes to support them and who is out in the public sort of areas ... that is probably a bit more of a concern to most of us."

Olympic and world pole vault champion Steve Hooker said he intends to defend his Commonwealth title in Delhi despite security concerns.

"The Commonwealth Games is the major outdoor title available to Australians in 2010 and my view at the moment is that I intend to be there to defend the title I won four years ago in Melbourne," Hooker said, who is happy that Athletics Australia supports the idea of athletes flying in for their event and flying straight out.

Olympic diving gold medallist Matthew Mitcham said he would compete, and veteran butterflyer Geoff Huegill said he would discuss safety with his family if he gained selection.

Sing of future glory, not the past

FORGET the snow, the ice, the knee-knocking low temperatures, suspended trains, intermittent buses, food shortages and road grit that’s as rare as 24-carat diamonds, there’s only one big story this week and it’s one that is guaranteed to generate heated debate at the very mention of it. Yes, Scottish athletes have voted Flower of Scotland to be their anthem of choice for October’s Commonwealth Games.

The games will be held in Delhi, where pavement gritters will likely be a more common sight than in Scotland, I reckon. The Indian authorities would probably be less surprised and more prepared than ours should it snow there for weeks accompanied by temperatures that hit more negatives than the average political debate.

We Scots used to have a word that described the weather conditions we have experienced since before Christmas. We simply used to call it winter.

Since we started swallowing the fanatical fatalism of the planetary doom-mongers, however, and began to believe their assertions that the period from December to March would in future consist only of mild winds and heavy rain, we have been lulled into a false sense of security. Those who said that Scotland’s ski resorts should be pulled down and that we would be growing tomatoes outdoors in the Cairngorms in January before too long should be ashamed of themselves. They should be forced to stand in the 4ft drifts in my garden wearing kilts and no underwear. That should give them a better feel for their responsibilities and cool their passions.

Still, I digress. Back to the anthem. Should any of our dedicated athletes reach the top step of the podium in Delhi – we collected 11 golds last time, including Grantown’s Craig MacLean, Aberdeen’s David Carry and Huntly’s Sheena Sharp – then the world will be treated to the sound of us Scots wondering aloud if we will ever again see the Scotland of 1314 when Robert Bruce bloodied English noses at Bannockburn.

Those were heady days, true, culminating six years later in the Declaration of Arbroath, signed in 1320. The very thought of it today is enough to have the first minister dribbling with excitement.

Roy Williamson’s plaintive song Flower of Scotland captures that mood, pining for the time when Scotland rose up and sent proud Edward’s army homeward to think again. Lucky it wasn’t travelling by rail or it would still be here waiting.

Ironically, the direct descendants of the wealthy nobles and barons who signed the Declaration of Arbroath to assert the sovereign power of the Scottish people sold up for English gold and signed the Act of Union 300 years later. Money talked just as loudly then as now.

Flower of Scotland certainly captured the nation’s spirit when belted out hoarsely by thousands of rugby fans at Murrayfield in 1990, just before Scotland tanked England 13-7 to win the Grand Slam. The song sounds particularly impressive at Murrayfield, especially before matches against the Auld Enemy, although less so at Hampden for some reason.

When played by an amateur bugle band at the wrong tempo on some sun-drenched foreign field, however, it’s as dignified as a giraffe ice-skating.

The flower is wilting. It is too nice and too musical to be a successful anthem. Like Scotland’s roads, we need some real grit to get us going.

Sadly, there’s nothing suitable to take its place. Scotland the Brave sounds like the anthem of a half-baked banana republic, more Wallace and Gromit than Wallace and Bruce, while Highland Cathedral sounds like a funeral dirge. Most other candidates, such as Scots Wha Hae, hark back to those bloodthirsty days of cross-border conflict. Is that really the best we can offer?

None of them is liable to inspire me to run, jump, throw or swim farther and faster than anyone else. Most are liable to send me, instead, to search for a deep-fried pie supper and a six-pack of cheap lager. Compare them with La Marseillaise, for example, and it’s no contest.

Scotland can surely do better than to look back 700 years for inspiration. We should organise a new anthem competition looking forward to a bright future, not dwelling on past glories.

TV can generate huge audiences for musical talent shows involving the likes of Simon Cowell, so I suggest we run our own series, along the lines of the X Factor, and showcase the creations of Scots composers and lyricists until a new anthem is chosen by public vote.

The final result will never please everyone, of course, but at least we would have made the effort and had some fun along the way. If none is satisfactory, we can head homeward to think again before the 2014 Commonwealth Games hit Glasgow.

Scotland is about much more than a wee bit hill and glen, after all.

Ohuruogu to run at Commonwealth Games

Christine Ohuruogu insists she will defend her Commonwealth title at the Games in Delhi and refuses to "jump on the bandwagon" and pull out over security fears.

The England team will make a final decision on their participation in the Games in India in September, but Paula Radcliffe and Jessica Ennis have already announced they will not compete in Delhi, albeit for sporting rather than security reasons.

But Olympic 400m champion Ohuruogu fully intends to compete as things stand.

She said: "No one wants to send people into an area that's unsafe, but I hope the Indian authorities make the necessary preparations.

"We had the same thing before the Athens Olympics when there was a bomb threat and then there was talk of a boycott before Beijing (in 2008).

"You have to be sensible and not jump on the bandwagon and say, 'I'm not going'."