The omni-powerful organising committee (OC) of the just-concluded Commonwealth Games in Delhi has been rewarded with a probe-order from none lass than the Prime Minister himself. Allegations of large scale financial irregularity, corruption & shoddy work had been levelled earlier by all sections of the media in the run up to the games. The chairman of the OC had appeared indifferent to them then and now he's playing not only the "victim" card (inappropriate reward for a 'successful' event) but also throwing stones with equal ease at other people (like the Delhi Chief Minister), who allegedly also live in glass houses.
It remains to be seen whether an enquiry committee headed by a government officer will be able to cut any impression against the oft-repeated alibi of "transparency & accountability" thrown around by the Chairman of the OC but the following points if checked by the audit committee could throw up certain unpleasant surprises. Hopefully the committee members are aware that meticulous documentations collected for satisfaction of the audit (like 3-party tender, selection of the lowest bid, contract documents etc) usually hide more than they reveal.
What could the enquiry committee look for in the contracts ?
1.1: Large ratio of limited tenders to open tenders.
1.2 : Physical verification of addresses, company documents of all the bidders in a limited tender.
1.3. Similarity in handwriting among the signatures of the limited bidders.
1.4 : Small ratio of total number of individual contractors to total number of contracts.
1.5: Large Ratio of contract price to the prevailing market price of other similar government projects\
(or DGSD rates)
Although the commonwealth games do not get much attention in view of the fact that number of world records set in these games do not match up to an Olympic or Asian games; one sportsperson in India made the nation proud by demonstrating world class talent and skills after beating another world ranker in the final of the Women Badminton single final.
It was a joy watching Saina Nehwal, winning the gold medal & justifying her World no. 3 ranking . A joy so powerful (of realising that one is watching a future world champion in play) that it lets you brush aside, if only for a day, the allegations of loot-fest committed by the OC members in these games.
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