The cat is out of the bag, officially. After putting up a brave front for months, the government on Tuesday admitted in Parliament that there have been lapses in preparing venues for the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

But it asserted that the projects would be completed well in time.

“There have been instances of slippage in a few project milestones for which appropriate recovery schedules have been prepared. But it is estimated that the projects will be completed as per schedule,” Union Sports Minister M S Gill said during the Question Hour in Lok Sabha on Tuesday.

The minister said certain contractors have defaulted on commitments, and that the government has penalised them as a result. “The Delhi Development Authority has imposed a penalty of Rs 50 lakh on the contractor for delay in completion of the squash court in Siri Fort Complex,” Gill said.

A sum of Rs 990.28 crore out of the total Rs 2,460 crore sanctioned for the Sports Authority of India has already been released, the minister said.

The All India Tennis Association has received Rs 24.70 crore out of the Rs 30 crore sanctioned, and CPWD has got the full amount of Rs 15 crore for developing Bog Bore Shooting Range in Kadarpur, Gurgaon, Gill said.

Responding to questions about security during the mega-event, Gill said, “The Ministry of Home Affairs is the nodal ministry for security related to the Games. The progress of security arrangements is reviewed on a regular basis by the Home Ministry and the Lieutenant-Governor of Delhi.”