No stoppages between Airport and Okhla

With the opening of the third Munirka flyover for commuters on Thursday, the road from the Okhla flyover to Indira Gandhi International Airport has become signal free.

Inaugurating the flyover, Delhi Public Works Department Minister Raj Kumar Chauhan reiterated that all the Commonwealth Games related projects would be completed within the stipulated time as constant monitoring was being done to accelerate the pace of work.

The Minister said Delhi would showcase its world-class infrastructure during the Commonwealth Games. “We are confident that the visitors during the Games would be able to carry a good impression about the city with their memorable stay,” he said.

With Outer Ring Road being the main arterial road as it caters to important residential and non-residential areas, he said a need was felt to improve the corridor starting from National Highway-8 intersection to Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, so that Outer Ring Road could become signal-free up to Okhla flyover.

The scheme for “Corridor Improvement of Outer Ring Road from IIT Gate to NH-8” was accordingly undertaken and the project comprised construction of a flyover at Africa Avenue and Aruna Asaf Ali Marg intersections; another at Vivekanand Marg, Nelson Mandela Marg and Poorvi Marg intersections; and the third flyover at Rao Tula Ram Marg and Benito Juarez Marg intersections. All the three flyovers have now been completed and opened to traffic.

India gets much needed vote of confidence from Oz

An Australian official says next year's Commonwealth Games in New Delhi have the potential to become the best ever, praising the progress the organizing committee has made in the past several months.

Perry Crosswhite, the Australian Commonwealth Games Association chief executive officer, told News Ltd. newspapers on Friday that India had made strong progress recently after early preparations on venues were stalled by disorganization.

"The jury is still out but given the rapid progress that the organizers are making, the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi have the potential to be the best games ever," Crosswhite said.

"We have had concerns on occasions this year in regards to the organizing committee's ability to meet deadlines and requirements. However as 2009 draws to a close I am buoyed by the progress shown in the last couple of months."

Crosswhite, a member of the Delhi 2010 coordination commission, said a number of specialists have been added to the committee.

"After meeting with the CGF (Commonwealth Games Federation) in October, organizers have appointed a number of international experts ... they all have significant experience in major games such as the Sydney Olympics and Melbourne Commonwealth Games.

"It's also pleasing to see that the Indian government has become more involved. They fully understand that the games need to be a success for their country, their people and their standing on the international stage."

Crosswhite's comments came at the completion of a three-day meeting in Delhi, and after a warning to games officials to maintain their efforts.

On Wednesday, Austin Sealy, chairman of the CGF coordination commission, said progress in infrastructure for the games should not disguise ongoing concerns about slow preparations and lapsed deadlines.

Sealy also visited all competition venues before issuing a statement.

"There has been noticeable progress over the last two months, however, with effectively only nine months remaining, the intensity must continue, and in fact, works must be further accelerated," Sealy said.

"We urge the construction agencies to ensure that no further delays are encountered as this will place the OC (Organizing Committee) in a difficult position and compromise final preparations and games readiness."

India will host the event from Oct. 3-14 next year, featuring 71 nations and territories of the Commonwealth.

CGF president Michael Fennell was scheduled to visit New Delhi on Friday for meetings with Organizing Committee members to discuss concerns raised by the commission

Anand Vihar gets Metro

The Delhi Metro’s Anand Vihar line, close to Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh, was inaugrated by the state Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and the country’s Urban Development Minister S Jaipal Reddy on Wednesday.

The 6.25-km line between Anand Vihar and Yamuna Bank station in East Delhi will be open to the public from Thursday. This is the fourth line of the Metro network and has five stations—Laxmi Nagar, Nirman Vihar, Preet Vihar, Karkardooma and Anand Vihar. The last two will have parking facilities.

Two more stations—Kaushambi and Vaishali—in Uttar Pradesh will be added by September this year, before the 2010 Commonwealth Games start. Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has also constructed two foot over-bridges—one each at Laxmi Nagar and Nirman Vihar stations—to provide commuters safe access to the stations.

It has also proposed property development at the Karkarduma and Anand Vihar stations.

“We are expecting a ridership of 60,000 on this line and it will be very beneficial for east Delhi residents,” DMRC Chief E Sreedharan said.

It will now be a seamless travel from Anand Vihar to Dwarka as the Anand Vihar-Yamuna Bank line would join the Yamuna Bank-Dwarka line. Talking about new Metro trains required to tackle congestion, Sreedharan said, “We have ordered 83 new trains, of which 16 have already arrived. The new trains will be of both four and six coaches. Initially, trains with four coaches would arrive.”

Metro authorities said they will allot three to four trains to the route. Delhi Metro, which began services on a small scale in December 2002, now ferries nearly 900,000 commuters a day. With the new line, the Delhi Metro now runs in a network of 96 km and has 83 stations.

CWG chairman Suresh Kalmadi tops SportzPower List 2009

Commonwealth Games Organising Committee chairman Suresh Kalmadi has catapulted to the top position in the SportzPower List 2009, while the once-powerful Lalit Modi and number one in 2008 has dropped to fifth position.

Union Sports Minister MS Gill has dropped two spots in 2009 and is placed at the 4th position and has been replaced by former BCCI president Sharad Pawar in the second position.

The rankings have been compiled by SportzPower, a media brand covering the various aspects related to the business and management of sports. The SportzPower each year comes out with an annual ranking of the top influencers and performers in the world of Indian sports.

Third place is occupied by Sahara chief Subroto Roy. The owner of Formula One team Force India and IPL franchise Royal Challengers, liquor baron Vijay Mallya makes his appearance at seventh spot, followed by the country's three top cricketers captain MS Dhoni, Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag.

The Top 10 is completed by IOA General Secretary Randhir Singh, another important factor in the CWG 2010 extravaganza.

A good year sees badminton star Saina Nehwal, golfers Gagan Bhullar, Jeev Milkha Singh, C Muniyappa, tennis veteran Leander Paes and boxer Vijender Singh mark their spots, while Gautam Gambhir, Pankaj Advani, upcoming boxer Suranjoy Singh, badminton duo V Diju and Jwala Gutta complete the list.