Thaindian News

New Delhi, Oct 3 (IANS) People of all age groups queued up outside the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium Sunday to attend the Commonwealth Games opening ceremony - hours before the start of the gala event.

The entry for the opening ceremony started at 2 p.m. — five hours before the function — but hundreds came two to three hours before and waited at the entry gates.

For some, the entry to the stadium was a smooth ride while it was a problem for some as they had to walk for two-three km to the gates and there was nobody providing information.

There was a huge rush of people looking for tickets near the stadium’s gate number 16, close to the Metro station.

But Arun Rai, a resident of central Delhi, said he had no trouble entering the stadium.

Saurabh Gupta, a class 5th student, said: “I was so excited for the ceremony that I came here at 12 noon and waited for two hours at the gate.. I did not want to miss anything as there were some pre-ceremony events planned.”

“Some people however were complaining that there was nobody to provide information about the entry gates.

“I took the Delhi Metro and had to walk for three km to reach Gate number 3. More than that, nobody gave me any directions,” said 80-year-old Fredrick, a British national.

The tickets for the opening ceremony were priced at Rs.50,000, Rs.25,000, Rs.5,000 and Rs.1,000.

Some 6,700 athletes from 71 countries and territories will vie for 829 medals in 17 disciplines at the Games.