Timeline: Commonwealth Games New Delhi 2010

When the Commonwealth Games Federation awarded the 2010 Games to the city of New Delhi back in 2003, it was seen as a great honour for India, which had not hosted an international sporting event of this stature since the Asian Games back in 1982.

But seven years on, with the date for the opening of the Games drawing near, the organising committee, Delhi government and the Centre were caught in the midst of a national outcry following instances of large-scale corruption and failure to complete all the works related to the mega event.

Eventually, however, the Games seem to be back on track. With four days to go for the Games, we bring you the sequence of events from the day they were awarded to India.

Nov 13, 2003: The 2010 Commonwealth Games are awarded to Delhi, with 46 voting for Delhi and 22 for the city of Hamilton in New Zealand.

Feb 10, 2005: The Organising Committee for the Commonwealth Games Delhi 2010 is formed.

Jan 6, 2008: The logo for the 2010 Delhi Games is launched at India Gate.

Sep 7, 2009: MS Gill, Union minister of state for youth affairs and sports, formally opens the headquarters of the organising committee in New Delhi.

Dec 24, 2009: Major fire breaks out at under-construction Commonwealth Games rugby stadium near the north campus.

Feb 16, 2010: First deadline for completion of venues. An internal audit by the organising committee reveals that none of the key logistics such as security, accommodation and transport have been completed.

July 29: Central Vigilance Commission reports major irregularities in Commonwealth Games projects. Sports minister Gill tells Rajya Sabha that estimated expenditure on the Games has increased by over Rs1,000 crore, from Rs10,455 crore in February 2010 to Rs11,494 crore in July.

August 5: CWG organising committee suspends three officials — TS Darbari, joint director general; Sanjay Mohindroo, deputy director general; and M Jayachandran, joint director general. Treasurer Anil Khanna quits.

August 19: NTPC and Power Grid Corp of India withdraw their sponsorship because of the negative publicity.

August 30: Unhappy with the selection policy, Olympic silver medallist Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore skips selection trials. Will not be able to participate in the Games.

August 31: Fourth deadline for completion of all venues for the Games missed.

September 16: AR Rahman peps up his composition for the theme song, Oh yaaro, yeh India bula liya, after the Centre requests the Oscar-winning composer to rework it following a tepid response from the public and several musicians.

Suresh Kalmadi makes a soft launch of the Games Village. Commonwealth Games Federation CEO Mike Hooper is all praise for the village.

September 19: Two Taiwanese nationals get injured when two suspected Indian Mujahideen activists open fire outside Delhi's Jama Masjid. Two hours later, a crude pressure-cooker bomb explodes in a car in the same area.

September 20: Canopy erected at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium falls injuring an additional DCP and another policeman.

Mike Duffy, an Australian TV news crew member carrying a case for an explosives detonation kit, walks into the main arena of the Games unchecked when a gate is opened to allow a police convoy through.

September 21: A 95m hanging foot overbridge under construction collapses, injuring 27 people, outside the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.

World discus champion Dani Samuels pulls out owing to security and health concerns.

Commonwealth Games Federation chief executive Mike Hooper terms the Athletes Village “filthy and uninhabitable”.

September 22: A portion of the false ceiling in the weightlifting arena in Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium complex falls.

English athletes Phillips Idowu, Christine Ohuruogu and Lisa Dobriskey pull out of Games citing health and safety concerns.

Kenya’s middle distance runner Janeth Jepkosgei and long-distance runner Luke Kibet withdraw.

September 23: Canadian archers Kevin Tataryn & Dietmar Trillus pull out.

Delhi civic authorities grapple with the spread of dengue with 2,536 cases raising health concerns for the CWG.

The BBC website publishes pictures showing filth and muck in Games Village apartment bathrooms, marks of grubby dog paws on mattresses, gaping holes in corridors, and stagnant water at the entrances.

September 24: First batch of 22 English athletes lands in the capital but heads to hotels instead of the Village.

Doctors and nurses of various Delhi government hospitals stage a walkout during an official briefing on the Commonwealth Games deployment that was conducted by the medical superintendent. Nearly half the staff that is to be deployed at medical centres across venues is still to get accreditation.

After days of indecision, the Olympic committees of New Zealand and Australia confirm participation after seeing positive steps being taken by the organisers to improve the situation.

September 25:: Commonwealth gold medallist Akhil Kumar gets a rude shock when his bed collapses as he sits down to rest after a long journey.

Kalmadi accepts responsibility for CWG mess but blames delay on government.