Emaar-MGF takes first hit in CWG blame game

As the blame game begins in the messed-up preparations for the Delhi Commonwealth Games, the first to be rapped is the private construction major Emaar-MGF, which was awarded the contract for building the games village.

 In a letter on Tuesday to urban development minister Jaipal Reddy, the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has sought to deflect the criticism levelled against it to the builder. Its interim report says there were various ''deficiencies and irregularities'' committed by the Dubai-based Emaar-MGF.

Reddy apparently agrees with the DDA. Even as the games were on, he wrote to DDA on 7 October asking it to initiate an inquiry into ''serious complaints'' against the developer. The minister noted that work at the games village had not been executed ''diligently and efficiently''.

Reports said action against the builder is imminent. The DDA has not released the security deposit of the private company pending a final report on the issue.

The delays in the buildings before they were handed over to the games organising committee (OC) had led to a huge backlog of work related to furnishings, fittings, polishing, and installation of accessories like TVs, washing machines and wi-fi services. The cleaning of the towers was adversely affected.

DDA, which functions under the urban development ministry, had given the contract to Emaar-MGF to build the games village in the public-private partnership (PPP) mode. Emaar was to construct 1,168 flats to accommodate around 8,000 sportspersons and team officials.