While Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president Suresh Kalmadi went into damage-control mode a day after the president of the Commonwealth Games Federation slammed India’s preparedness for the 2010 Games, the vice-chairman of the organising committee Randhir Singh admitted Mike Fennell’s letter was a “wake-up call” for India.

“We now have to retrieve the Games,” Randhir told The Indian Express today. “The letter from Fennell shows that the organisation of the Games is a major concern for him. It shows that he is very worried, and we need to make some immediate organisational changes to ensure that we’re up to the task.”

In his letter on Sunday, Fennell had asked for a meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh “on the lack of preparations and to seek his input in developing an appropriate recovery plan.” Kalmadi announced on Monday that he would arrange the meeting.

Randhir, however, said that some issues raised by Fennell, and in a CGF Coordination Commission Report (see box), were genuine. “There is no point arguing with the CGF on this. We know the infrastructure will be ready on time despite the slight delay; we know there will be no problem with security but the big issue is how the Games will be staged. And we need to reassure the CGF that we can host the best Commonwealth Games ever, which we can if we respond to the ringing alarm bells.”

Detailing the problems, Randhir said that the call of the hour was de-centralisation. “There are 23 committees looking into the various organisational aspects of the Games but the chairmen of those committees hardly ever meet. So first, we have to ensure they come together more often. Second, we need to give these committees more powers so that they don’t have to run to the Chairman of the Organising Committee (Kalmadi) for every small thing. At the moment, these committees only have an advisory role but they must have the power to take decisions.”

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