An RTI inquiry moved by The Indian Express revealed that 38 persons from Pune were given official assignments and designations for Commonwealth Games. Most of them were hired in the beginning of 2009 and continued till the end of the Games and were stationed in Delhi during the period. Of the 38,15 held senior positions ranging from additional director general to director while three were consultants. The V K Shunglu Committee,probing the CWG scam,has not just accused Suresh Kalmadi for financial irregularities,and running the OC like a club,but also said he appointed his loyalists,mainly from Pune,in key positions. The three who occupied top positions were Lt Gen Ashok Kapur,ADG,Games Village,Sangeeta Welinkar,ADG (CS &CI) and Purnima Pendse,ADG ceremonies. All three were also roped in for the Commonwealth Youth Games (CYG) held in Pune in 2008. The pay scale for ADG ranges between Rs 75,000 and Rs 1.25 lakh a month. People were selected for Delhi games based on their experience and performance at the CYG. In fact one of the reasons for youth games was to train persons capable to handle the Games in New Delhi, said Gen Kapur. Two persons from Pune were appointed as DDG for the Delhi Games at a salary of Rs 60,000 to Rs 1 lakh per month. They are Brigadier G A Siddique who was taken for Venue Development and Overlays and Moti Irani who was DDG Accommodation. Both of them were also promoted from their earlier designations of director during the CYG. Ten people from Pune were at the position of directors Col R B Singh,Venues and Overlays,Vikrant Bhuptani,Image and Look,Jamaal Raazi,Technology,Maneck Kotwal,Village,Sujata Aiyer,Ceremonies,Sharayu Almekar,Catering,Sweety Patel,Merchandising Uma Badve,Volunteer Programme,Ashwin Lokare,CGA Relations and Shekhar Deorukhar. While Patel,Badve,Kotwal,Aiyer and Almekar were project officers earlier and had been upgraded to the post of directors drawing between Rs 45,000 and 75,000 a month,Bhuptani,Raazi and Lokre were joint directors at CYG. Deorukhar,Kalmadis aide who was was arrested in February,was OSD to Chairman during CYG. The rest of the Puneites worked in the posts of either Project Officers or Assistant Project Officers while three were taken on as consultants Nishigandha Mathur,Nivedita Saboo and Dimakh Sahasrabudhe. Two Pune firms got Games contracts Two Pune companies were awarded contracts for the CWG. Master Tour Organiser was paid Rs 59,25,024 for vehicles hired from it and Grovers Sporting and Medical Equipment Ltd was paid Rs 33,25,750 for a wrestling Podium set. Rahul Shah of Master Tour said there was no written contract and his company supplied vehicles as per OCs demand. ENS
