Indian Prime Minister takes charge of 'chaotic' Games Minister, Prime, charge, Games, Indian

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http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news ... rf7lf-1225905655689

INDIA'S Prime Minister has taken charge of Delhi's chaotic Commonwealth Games preparations in an effort to prevent further embarrassment to the country.

Manmohan Singh will now oversee preparations that have spiralled out of control under the leadership of India's Commonwealth Games chief Suresh Kalmadi.

There's open panic in the Government's ranks. Mr Singh told his Games review panel: "The eyes of the world are on the country as we conduct this prestigious event."

Mr Singh will tour venues in the last week of August to help get the turmoil-ridden games back on course.

Despite the Games clearly slipping out of control, with most venues still not constructed and debris littering the Delhi streets, Mr Kalmadi remains calm.

He said all stadiums would be world class.

"It will be a great Games," he said. "They're all temporary crises."

He even said he was happy the monsoon rains had exposed leaking stadium roofs, flooded venues, buckled competition floors and washed away part of the shooting range.

"We are thankful for the rain as we are seeing where the little leaks are," he said.

With 48 days to go there is no Commonwealth Games merchandise on sale and the catering contracts have not been finalised.

Tourist hot-spots like shopping centre Connaught Place, renovated for the Games, is currently a mess of mud, steel and rubble.

If Mr Kalmadi had his time over he says he would prepare Delhi for the huge sporting event exactly the same way.

"No I would not do anything differently," he said.

"I think we have gone about it in the right manner. Our model has been good."

Along with construction woes Mr Kalmadi and his organising committee have been implicated in another corruption scandal.

Mr Kalmadi is being scrutinised for hiring the company AM Films. The company - hired to supply outdoor display units for the Queen's Baton relay inauguration in London 2009 - had no company director or employees two days before it was directed to be paid by Mr Kalmadi.

The Times of India reported yesterday that the mystery company had a paid-up capital of 1.

Almost every Commonwealth Games construction site has illegally employed children to work for as little as $3 a day.

s Despite the Daily Telegraph having met some of these child workers Kalmadi says this is not happening.

And anyway it is not his problem.

"This happens, the Delhi government has settled the issue, so now all this is a thing of the past," Kalmadi said.

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Democratic India is so great it will host the Olympics soon.