Some of CWG stadia may not finish by Aug 31: Delhi govt

New Delhi: Under mounting attack for tardy preparations for Commonwealth Games, Delhi Government admitted delay in several key projects and said works in some of the stadia may not be completed within the final deadline of August 31.

Delhi Finance Minister A K Walia, after taking stock of progress of work at Yamuna Sports Complex, one of the key venues of the event, said government was not satisfied with pace of work at several under-construction stadia. "We are not satisfied with progress of work (in some of the stadiums). They (the construction agencies) are saying all the works will be completed before the deadline. But there are doubts," Walia said. The minister also admitted that there has been delays in several key projects being implemented by the city government. Delhi government had undertaken projects worth over Rs 10,000 crore to improve infrastructure in the city ahead of the Games."The agencies concerned are told to complete all the works related to the event by August 31. There are lot of works left to be done. We are facing various difficulties also. We all have to put lot of hard work," Walia, who has been told to regularly monitor progress of various projects, said. 14 stadia are being developed to host the mega event and work on some of them are yet to be completed. Facing lot of criticism for the city`s tardy preparation for the event, Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit on Monday had threatened to blacklist contractors if they fail to complete works within final deadline of August 31.The Barapullah Nalla elevated road project as well as various street-scapping projects are also running behind schedules. The elevated road between Sarai Kale Khan and the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, the main venue of the event, is being built to provide uninterrupted traffic flow from Games Village near Akshardham temple to the stadium. With just two months left for the event and several key projects running behind schedule, Dikshit last week had ordered various agencies concerned to work through the night to finish works as soon as possible. Union Cabinet Secretary K M Chandrasekhar and Lt Governor Tejindra Khanna on Saturday had made a detailed review of Delhi`s overall preparation for the event and ordered the agencies to ensure maximum coordination to ensure early completion of the projects. PTI