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With less than an year to go for the XIXth Commonwealth Games, Delhi, the host city, is striving to put up a successful show. Come October 3rd 2010 and all eyes would be on Delhi and all of India to fulfill its promise of hosting a spectacular Commonwealth Games.

For the past 2 years, Delhi has virtually become a huge construction site with major infrastructure projects being executed all across the Indian Capital. The Airport is being revamped, the Delhi Metro project is being completed, roads and flyovers are being constructed everywhere and most importantly 12 venues which will be used for hosting the Commonwealth Games are being setup. This is a mammoth task for the Delhi Authorities and has become of part of life for the people of Delhi for the past 2 years. How Delhi fares in hosting the games successfully is anyone’s guess but one thing is for sure, the XIXth Commonwealth Games are set to experience a totally different feel in Delhi as compared to the developed metropolitan cities of Melbourne and Manchester where the games were played in 2006 and 2002.

Recently, there have been speculations that Delhi is running slow in terms of preparedness for the mega event. This came after officials of the Commonwealth Games Federation visited the city. Only 2 out of the 12 venues have been completed so far and the deadline for many infrastructural projects has been postponed. Delhi authorities are trying their best to keep such speculation under wraps with top Indian officials including the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, Home Minister Dr. P. Chidambaram and Sports Minister Mr. M.S. Gill, all giving statements to assure that the preparations are on track.

Another major concern for participating countries and the Indian authorities is the security arrangements during the 2010 Commonwealth Games. After last year’s horrific terrorist attack in Mumbai, India is being looked at as a country vulnerable to security lapses. Delhi authorities including the Delhi Police have presented a detailed plan on how security issues will be managed during the Commonwealth Games. This plan includes continuous surveillance with the help of IAF helicopters, watch towers, snipers, 4 level security checks and use of the latest technology for identification cards, cameras and centralized monitoring.

This is the 2nd major sporting event in many years for the city of Delhi and all of India for that matter, the first being the Asian Games in 1982. Delhi will welcome over 8500 athletes and officials from around 70 Commonwealth nations during the games. India is desperate to prove to the world that it can be a feasible venue for hosting major international events beyond cricket tournaments. The success of Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games will mean more visibility for this fast developing nation and will also encourage authorities to pitch for Olympics 2020.