“Ahmedabad CWG may cost ₹3,000-₹5,000 crore”

The soon-to-be-constituted Organising Committee of the 2030 Commonwealth Games in Ahmedabad will be aiming to conduct the event at an operational cost of `3,000 to `5,000 crore. According to a reliable source closely involved in the planning of the Games, estimates for ongoing infrastructure upgrade, including for both sports and public utility facilities, are still being worked out to finalise the overall cost of the mega-event.

The source said Gujarat has taken the “requisite lessons” from the handling of the 2010 Games in Delhi which ended up mired in several controversies, including infrastructure delay, corruption charges, and cost that ballooned way past the initial estimates. “The operational cost for the Ahmedabad CWG would come to₹3,000 to ₹5,000 crore. This does not include funds (capital expenditure) that will go into building other infrastructure, some of it being handled by the urban development department,” the source said.

“Obviously, the cost incurred for building public infrastructure will not be counted towards the Games as the utility of that is going to be beyond the Games. It’s a slightly long-drawn process and we will need some time to come to a definitive estimate,” he added. The operational cost of the Games is funds spent on the conduct of the games for the duration it is planned. Some of it can be offset by the revenue generated from avenues like gate tickets and commercial deals during

the event. The operational cost of the 2010 Games was a little over ₹2,600 crore which was way higher than the ₹635 crore estimate. The Games, which ended up being the costliest of all time, cost the exchequer over `70,000 crore overall. Gujarat’s Principal Secretary (Sports), Ashwani Kumar, who was part of the Indian delegation that was in Glasgow earlier this week when Ahmedabad was awarded the 2030 Games, refused to speak on the budget.

But he confirmed to PTI that the plan to have an Organising Committee that is registered as a not-for-profit company to be dissolved after the Games is under consideration. The OC, which will face greater financial scrutiny owing to its status of being a company, is expected to be constituted by the end of December or beginning of January 2026.

“It (not of profit company) is under serious consideration. It’s a model that was adopted by the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games and was recommended by CAG after the 2010 CWG in Delhi. I don’t want to dwell on what happened in the Delhi Games but I think lessons have been learnt,” he said.

The Melbourne edition is often described as one of the best CWG of all time, earning praise for its execution and public participation. Kumar said the Ahmedabad OC would strive for professionalism in every aspect and start operations by January first week. “The OC will have 12 to 15 members. It will have a chairman, vice chairman, a CEO, representatives from Commonwealth Sport (the governing body of the Games), IOA, the Paralympic Committee of India, some athletes and domain experts as well,” he said.

Headed by then IOA chief Suresh Kalmadi, the OC for Delhi CWG was registered as a society and drew heavy criticism for its handling of the Games and the corruption allegations against it. The Ahmedabad CWG is expected to be held in the October of 2030 with an expected roster of 15 to 17 disciplines.