After ULFA, rain becomes the big threat

It has been raining here since yesterday, and this afternoon it poured for over an hour, bringing life to a standstill as organisers were giving finishing touches to the preparations. The local Met station, however, says the weather is expected to improve in the next two days, and hopefully the opening ceremony 8211; slated for Friday evening 8211; would not be get dampened.

The Met office blamed westerly disturbances over the Bay of Bengal for the sudden change in the weather. HG Pathak, the Guwahati Met office director said a cyclonic circulation was moving across the Gangetic plains towards the Northeastern region since February 1. One part of the disturbance was moving towards the Himalayas in the north and the other towards the east and northeast, he added.

Meanwhile over 2,500 participants from as many as 22 states have already checked in to the Games Village. Reception committee spokesman Snjay Lohia said at least one batch of every state was expected to be here by Friday.

8220;The contingents from different states are arriving in batches according to the event schedule. But since a number of trains to Guwahati from different parts of the country are running late, it is difficult to ascertain which team is reaching at what time,8221; Lohia said.

Teams from Punjab and Manipur, the two states which are vying for the overall best position, were among the first to arrive, but their practice sessions have been affected due to the inclement weather.

But, though the ULFA has lifted its ban and boycott of the Gmes, the state government is not willing to take any chances. 8220;Security will remain as tight as possible. But we are not going to allow the participants get any feel of the tight security,8221; Pradyut Bordoloi, Assam power minister who is also one of the spokesmen of the Organising Committee said.