Centre to review security for upcoming sports events

The Centre has decided to review the security arrangements for four major sporting events, including the Commonwealth Games, to be held in India this year in wake of the Pune blast, the first major terror attack in the country in 14 months.The decision to review the already elaborate security arrangements for the World Cup Hockey beginning February 28, the Commonwealth Games, besides the Indian Premier League was taken as a result of the blast in the German Bakery in Pune's posh Koregaon Park, which killed nine people.

Home Ministry sources said the main concern is over World Hockey Championship as any terror incident in the run up to the event may lead to withdrawal of participating nations.

Home Secretary Gopal K Pillai said the government has put in place a very elaborate arrangement for the tournament.

"We are in close touch with security liason officers of all countries that are coming here to participate. So far, all of them have seen the preparations done by the Delhi Police and the MHA. They are quite satisfied," he said.

Pillai said the authorities would continue to alter or update these security measures in light of specific terror threats.

The Hockey World Cup will be spread over two weeks from February 28 to March 13. The tournament will see participation by 10 countries and around 400 players and delegates.

The hugely popular IPL cricket matches will be held between March 13 and April 25 and the Commonwealth Games will be held between October 3 and 14.

"It will be a big challenge for us to make the events incident-free. We are leaving no stone unturned and preparing in advance," an official who did not wish to be quoted said.

The Commonwealth Shooting Championship will also be held here between February 17 and 28 during which 1,000 athletes and officials from 30 countries will visit India.

The IPL matches are huge congregation of international cricket stars, Bollywood personalities, huge crowds and media making them a sitting duck for the terrorists.

The case is similar for the Commonwealth Games during which 9,000 athletes from 71 countries besides 100,000 international spectators are expected to visit the country.

Delhi schools to remain closed during CWG period in October

All the schools in the national capital will remain closed during the Commonwealth Games to be held in New Delhi from October 3 to 14, chief minister Sheila Dikshit said on Monday.

Announcing the decision after a Cabinet meeting, she said the holiday period during Dusshera has been rescheduled so that students could enjoy the mega sporting event.

"We have made adjustments in the holiday period around Dusshera (October 17) to keep the schools closed during the Commonwealth Games," Dikshit told reporters.

"To make up for the extended holiday period around Dusshera, we have decided to cut down on the summer vacation," she said.

Education Minister Arvinder Singh Lovely said the decision would also help in easing the heavy traffic during the Games period.

"Now the Autumn break will be for 17 days instead of the current nine days while we have decided to cut down on summer vacation by 12 days," Lovely said.

He said the winter vacation will be from December 25 to January 9, 2011.

Lovely said the number of total academic days in the current year will be 217 instead of last year's 215 days.

Commonwealth Games boss unworried by Pune bomb

Commonwealth Games officials are seeking more information from the government after Saturday's bombing in India renewed security fears ahead of the Delhi Commonwealth Games later this year.

Nine people were killed and 60 injured when a bomb exploded outside a restaurant in the west Indian city of Pune on Saturday.

The blast was the first terrorist attack on Indian soil since 2008.

"I have been in touch with foreign affairs this morning," CEO of The Australian Commonwealth Games Association Perry Crosswhite told AAP on Monday.

"We are renewing our request for information."

He said his concerns were not increased by the attack which has been linked to the Pakistani based Lashkar-e-Toiba militant group.

The Indian government has already announced compensation of 200,000 rupees ($A4,828) to the families of those killed and 100,000 rupees to the injured.

Mr Crosswhite said the athletes would not face the same security risks faced by everyday tourists.

"All the areas where our team is going to be - the village, the airport - are all going to extremely secure."

The bomb, hidden in a backpack under a table, exploded at about 7.30pm on Saturday at the German Bakery restaurant, which is a magnet for young Indians and foreign tourists.

The eatery is near an Hindu ashram, or religious retreat, popular with overseas visitors and a Jewish cultural and religious centre run by the orthodox Chabad-Lubavitch movement.

Private intelligence firm Stratfor reported the explosive used was RDX, a military-grade explosive, mixed with ammonium nitrate.

"Both materials are relatively easy to acquire and are commonly used in attacks in India," Stratfor said.

Mock drill conducted to check preparedness

Two “bomb blasts” were triggered at Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium, the venue of World Cup Hockey-2010 due to start from February 28, at 9:20 a.m. on Sunday as part of a disaster management mock drill to check the preparedness of various agencies in such a scenario.

While about 400 personnel and officers from various departments participated in the exercise in which 40 “casualties” were moved to two hospitals and the responses were noted, the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi District) did not participate in the drill as part of a stand taken by the Delhi Police on the issue.

However, other sections of the Delhi Police including Police Control Room, Delhi Traffic Police and Specialists in Weapons and Arms Tactics (SWAT) participated in the drill. Senior Specialist of National Disaster Management Authority Brigadier Dr. B. Khanna said as far as the drill was concerned, all the stakeholders including the fire department, ambulance services, Delhi Police, Bomb Disposal Squad, various civic agencies and hospitals participated in the exercise. Nevertheless, the drill brought to the fore the tussle for one-upmanship between the civil administration and a section of the police that wants the offices of the Deputy Commissioner of Police to chair the respective District Disaster Management Authority against the provisions of the Disaster Management Act 2005.

Sources in the Delhi Government said the drill was planned at the stadium as it would host the World Cup Hockey championship from February 28 to March 13 and would also be a venue for the Commonwealth Games later this year.

The Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) planned the mock drill and a meeting was held on February 13 at NDMC Palika Kendra to attend which DCP (New Delhi) was also invited as he is a notified member of DDMA (New Delhi). Earlier his office had also participated in all disaster management activities and mock drills conducted as per mandate of the Disaster Management Act, 2005. But on the evening of February 12, Delhi Government sources said the office of DCP (New Delhi) informed that the Delhi Police had decided that they would not participate in any mock drills or other exercises relating to Commonwealth Games being done under DDMA. It was stated that DDMA should keep away from the Commonwealth Games and from the stadiums as only the Delhi Police had the mandate to conduct such mock exercises as the same are related, in the opinion of a section of Delhi Police, to combating terrorism.

Incidentally, the Delhi Police Commissioner is understood to have discussed the issue with the Lieutenant-Governor a couple of days ago. When contacted DCP New Delhi Shankar Dash refused to comment on the issue saying: “Your question on my not attending the mock drill is itself prejudiced. It seems you have been briefed by some officials and you are going by their version. It is a Sunday and I would not like to state anything on this issue.”

The civil administration has taken strong exception to this refusal of a section of Delhi Police to participate in DDMA mock drills and raised it with higher authorities. Delhi Chief Secretary Rakesh Mehta said he would seek a report on the issue and call a meeting to resolve the matter.

Meanwhile, a senior Delhi Government official said: “The Disaster Management Act, 2010, applies to whole of India and the only authority to amend the said Act is Parliament itself. If the Delhi Police wants the said Act to be modified or amended, it should approach Parliament or the Supreme Court.”

Rodger retains women’s shot put title

A year ago, Alison Rodger was contemplating retirement from athletics, writes Doug Gillon.

Now, following the successful retention of the women’s shot-put title at the UK Championships, she has realistic hopes of Commonwealth Games and European Championship selection.

The Kilbarchan thrower, who won with 16.02 metres, was one of just two Scottish medallists over the two-day World Championship trials in Sheffield, and though Shettle­ston pole vaulter Alasdair Strange equalled his national record yesterday, no Scot has qualified for the team which will be named a week today. Performances up to midnight next Sunday can be considered.

“I was going to quit the sport until I won last year,” said Rodger. Now she has changed coaches, working with former UK champion Mark Procter after a move to Loughborough where she shares a flat with three-times Scottish discus champion Kirsty Law.

“I’ve had a chest infection all week, and when I took six throws on Wednesday I almost collapsed,” said Rodger. 
“Winning here meant a lot, but I was over 17.00 metres in warm-up, so 16.02 was not what I was looking for. I’m disappointed I didn’t hold it together. I’m working on relaxation technique for when I compete. I need 16.50 outdoors to go to Delhi [Commonwealths] and 17.00 for Barcelona [Euro­peans]. I can do that when I stay relaxed.”

School dinner lady Henriett Paxton served up the mouth-watering prospect of a world-class Scottish pole vaulter after taking silver with 4.21m before failing narrowly at 4.32 which would have eclipsed her own Scottish best.

Vaulting for less than three years, Paxton is invited to the Birmingham Grand Prix next Saturday. “The world indoor qualifying is 4.40, and that’s not out of sight,” she said.

“I was well clear when I set the Scottish record at 4.31, but I’m not chasing that. If it happens, it’s a massive bonus. Outdoors is where I’m aiming, and I know 4.40 will happen then.”

Chris Baillie seemed in shape to defend his 60m hurdles title. He was in contention for gold until his right calf cramped and he finished fifth (7.83).

“I have a place in Birmingham,” said the Commonwealth silver medallist, “but unless I get the calf sorted, I’m not going to get the world qualifying (7.65), so I may be better concentrating on the summer.”

Ready for Games? Delhi’s anti-beggar drive faces practical hurdles

Amidst ongoing efforts by authorities to make the national capital beggar-free before the Commonwealth Games, social activists say the drive faces a practical problem.

With just eight months left for the mega sporting event, authorities are on their toes to ensure the city is free from beggars before it receives thousands of tourists from around the world. For this, the authorities are taking the help of a 50-year-old anti-beggary law to sweep off panhandlers from the capital’s roads.

However, social workers say it is easier said than done. “You can’t just make them vanish from the roads either by arresting them or putting them in shelters. It’s practically impossible and lacks vision,” says Sanjay Kumar of Ashraya Adhikar Abhiyan, an NGO that works for the destitute in the capital.

“How can you accommodate thousands of beggars, most of whom are homeless, in a few shelters or in jails which are already overcrowded,” Kumar said.

According to the social welfare department, the estimated number of beggars in Delhi is around 60,000. Among them 30% are below 18 years of age, 69.94% are males and 30.06% are females. But NGOs claim the numbers to be more than one lakh.

“Thousands of migrants come to Delhi in search of a livelihood. Some get work, while others are forced to beg. There is no official record of their number or whatsoever,” says Anshu Gupta of Goonj, an NGO working for the poor.

“It’s poverty that forces beggars to opt for this. You can’t sort out the problem only through a law,” Gupta said.

Delhi is using the (Bombay) Prevention of Begging Act, 1959, which has been adopted by 18 states and authorises the police to detain anyone found begging on the streets.

If found guilty, the person is sent to one of 12 shelters in Delhi, which can accommodate about 2,200 people.

Delhi’s social welfare minister Mangat Ram Singhal had announced setting up a dozen of mobile courts for trying beggars.

At present, two such courts are operational and have tried more than 60 persons, according to a senior official in the social welfare department. “We prepare a social investigation report of those arrested under the Beggary Act. We try to find out whether the person had no other means of earning except begging. In most of the cases the beggars are found to be professionals who otherwise could have earned a decent living,” a source in the department said wishing not...

AFI suspends 15 state units, approves 2010 calendar

Athletics Federation of India today suspended as many as 15 of its units for not holding state meets and not following the AFI calendar.

On the final day of its two-day Annual General Meeting here, the AFI also approved its 2010 calendar, which includes international meets before the Commonwealth Games in October.

Chandigarh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Orissa, Delhi, Assam and Kerala were suspended for two months for holding their state championships outside the period provided in the calendar.

Jammu and Kashmir was suspended for not holding required state meets and for not sending athletes in the National Inter-District Meet.

Manipur, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Sikkim and Andaman and Nicobar were suspended for lack of athletic activities in the calendar year. All these states will remain suspended till revoked by the AGM.

Meanwhile, India will host four international meets -- three Asian Grand Prixes and an Asian All Star Meet – before the Commonwealth Games to be held from October 3-14.

The first Asian GP will be held in Pune on June 1 while Bangalore and Chennai will host the second and third on June 5 and 9 respectively. The Asian All Star Meet, which will serve as the athletics test event of the CWG, will be held at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi on July 29 and 30.

National Senior Federation Cup, National Open Athletics Championships and National Inter-State Senior Athletics Meet, AFI’s three flagship senior national events, will be held in Ranchi (May 1-4), Cochin (May 15-18) and Hyderabad (September 10-13) respectively.

National Youth Athletics Championships, which will be held in Coimbatore from April 23 to 25, will serve as the selection trial for the 2010 Youth Olympics in Singapore in August.

National Junior Federation Cup, to be held in Vizag (May 27-29), will serve as selection trial for the Asian Junior Championship (July 1-14) in Vietnam and World Junior Championships (July 19-25) in Canada.

In order to generate revenue from marathons and road races, which have been fast becoming multi-crore business, the AFI also decided to form a five-member Marathon and Road Race Committee to look into the matter.

The Committee will be chaired by AFI Working President Adille Sumariwala and will have Kirpal Singh, Ravinder Chowdhury, Madhu Kant Pathak and Sushil Salwan as members.

The AGM also decided to ensure that maximum participation is achieved at the National Inter-District Meet, proposed to be held in Haridwar from October 27-30.

AFI Secretary Lalit Bhanot said the federation would look participation for at least 350 districts in Haridwar.

The AGM also decided to hold its meeting in December from the next calendar year after the end of competition period in November, instead of February.