Utter chaos mars build up to the National Games

Tapan Mohanta

Ranchi, Feb 10 (PTI) Like its torrid build-up, the 34thNational Games is set for a chaotic start as utter confusionprevailed over organisational aspects of the premiermulti-discipline competition that set to start here onFebruary 12.

Even as the Jharkhand Olympic Association should be givencredit for building a sprawling Mega Sports Complex --Khelgaon -- in the outskirts of the city, the organisationalaspect of the competition came a cropper.

With accreditation of most of the athletes and media notready, players contingents from various states and media hadto go through a harrowing time today.

The private agency given the responsibility of theaccreditation appeared to have lost all the applications asthe procedure of applying in hard copies had to be done againat last minute.

Such was the mismanagement that the players accreditationfor the hosts Jharkhand was not even ready.

Miffed at the system, an official of the JharkhandKabaddi team while submitting his athletes application said,"Ours are not ready, forget about the outstation athletes. Atleast we should be content that the National Games ishappening finally."

The situation was no different for the 632-memberKarnataka contingent as their state Olympic Associationjoint-secretary R Prakash had to shuttle between theInformation Centre in the city and the Mega Sports Complex.

"In the morning I was told to go to the InformationCentre but the officials there had no clue and I had to comeback but the case is no different here," Prakash told PTI.

The case was no different for the media as the JOAassured that they would hand over the cards soon.

"We will contact you by 10pm," JOA president R K Anandtold PTI.

Asked about the organisational chaos, Anand said, "We hadseven governments after which we were awarded the Games. Butdespite that we have managed to build such an infrastructure.

Everything will fall in place soon."

The Games have been postponed several times before. Atotal of 33 events will be held in three cities of Ranchi,Dhanbad and Jamshedpur in the competition to be held fromFebruary 12-26.