Beautify city with own funds, Sheila told

The Organising Committee (OC) of the Commonwealth Games on Thursday asked the Delhi government to bear all expenses of sprucing up the city in line with the event's “look and feel” the organisers have finalised. Suresh Kalmadi, chairman of the OC, presented to Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit the entire set of ideas and design elements that the Look and Image Department has prepared for Delhi.

The Organising Committee (OC) of the Commonwealth Games today asked the Delhi government to bear all expenses of sprucing up the city in line with the event's “look and feel” the organisers have finalised.

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Suresh Kalmadi, chairman of the OC, presented to Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit the entire set of ideas and design elements that the Look and Image Department has prepared for Delhi.

While the government asked the OC to bear the expenses, the latter rejected the request.

“They will have to foot the bill. We have given them the style and design elements. They will look into the entire proposal,” said Lalit Bhanot, official spokesman of the OC.

Dikshit formed a committee comprising agencies like the Delhi Transport Corporation, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, Municipal Corporation of Delhi and the New Delhi Municipal Council under Principal Secretary Rina Ray to act on the OC’s design proposals.

The committee will clear the budget while each agency will pay for branding their own projects.

An OC source said Kalmadi categorically said in the meeting that the OC would not bear the expenses of sprucing up the city.