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Cranes remove debris of a collapsed bridge at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium on Tuesday in New Delhi, India.Getty Images

Canadian Commonwealth Games officials are monitoring "hour-by-hour" the progress and safety of the buildings where athletes are to be housed in New Delhi when they start to arrive Sept. 24. COC officials said they'd planned to keep athletes on the ground at home or send then to alternate accommodations if the athlete village isn't ready in New Delhi.

There is no plan for Canada or any of the 70-plus Commonwealth states to skip the Games over the deadline construction, or to move the Games to another place, Canadian officials said on a teleconference Tuesday.

But the collapse this week of a foot-bridge near the athlete village - injuring several workers seriously - did drive home the urgency of being ready for an Oct. 3 opening. There are also health concerns about hygiene, recent monsoon rains and dengue fever.

While competition venues do appear ready for world-class sport, Canadian Commonwealth sport director Scott Stevenson said some of the apartments that will house athletes do not have electricity or plumbing connected, and cleanup of the construction sites has lagged. A report in the Times of India said half the athlete residence buildings were unfinished, just a few days before apartments for 7,000 athletes are expected to welcome their first guests.

Indian government officials have moved "at a glacial pace" to address to village issues, said Dr. Andrew Pipe, president of Commonwealth Games Canada. But he reiterated that though the government's "intransigence" has dampened progress, there has been no call to move the Games. The athletes and the missions intend to forge on, he said.

"We are deeply concerned that the condition of the residence facilities is not at all what we expected, nor anything like what was promised," Stevenson said in a conference call. He is part of the advance team that has seen what the Canadians are moving into. Two nights ago, RCMP security advisers joined up with the Canadians to see what preparations are in place.

Stevenson said he has been disappointed with the lodgings.

"In the residential area of village, we had very, very high expectations, but the but completion of the village has left something to be desired.. It's not ready to provide for us yet.

"But everything on international side of the fence and training venues on the grounds has been absolutely spectacular.

"We recognize that the monsoon rains have made things more difficult for workers here. But the current conditions are unacceptable and we have formally requested that the (Commonwealth Games Federation) and the organizing committee get these issues resolved prior to the athlete arrivals that begin on Friday," Stevenson said in a statement issued by Canadian officials.

At least 23 construction workers were injured when the bridge collapsed, five with serious injuries.

The delays prompted Commonwealth Games Federation president Michael Fennell to contact the Indian government Tuesday and urge them to finish work on the accommodation in time for the Oct. 3-14 Games.

"The CGF has asked the Cabinet Secretary to immediately deploy the necessary resources to fix all the outstanding issues to an acceptable level," said Fennell, of Jamaica.

Dr. Pipe said athletes' safety was his first concern. "We're addressing an extremely challenging situation and monitoring developments very closely," Pipe said.

Some other countries have reacted strongly to the New Delhi situation. Commonwealth Games Scotland said the area allocated to the team was "unsafe and unfit for human habitation."

New Zealand team manager Dave Currie said the Games may not go ahead.

"In the time frame that is left, unless there is tremendous effort and energy and problem-solving ability to get it done, it's going to be extremely hard to get across the line," Currie told a New Zealand radio network.

"If the village is not ready and athletes can't come, obviously the implications of that are that (the event) is not going to happen."

British bookmaker William Hill is offering 5-1 odds that the Games will fail to go ahead as scheduled, and 2-1 that either England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland will pull out.

New Zealand Prime Minister John Key said the obstacles "aren't insurmountable although there are real concerns about whether they can be achieved in the time frame," he said.

The delays in construction have been overshadowed more recently by safety concerns, heightened on the weekend after two unidentified gunmen on a motorcycle shot and wounded two tourists near the Jama Masjid, one of India's biggest mosques.

That has brought calls for a tight security web at the Games. Canadian athletes and officials will be advised to stay in the compound or in training venues and not to wander around New Delhi.

Fennell said security, while good and necessary, slows down the last minute preparations.

"The problems are arising because deadlines for the completion of the village have been consistently pushed out. Now, the high security around the site, while vital, is slowing progress and complicating solutions," Fennell said.

CGF chief executive Mike Hooper said organizers had not lived up to promises on delivery dates.

"The conditions continued to be appalling and so we felt the matter needed to be elevated. ... Organizing committee chairman Suresh Kalmadi now tells me that the cabinet secretary took a round of the village and assured that everything possible would be done."

Dr. Pipe said : "We have communicated our lack of satisfaction... it's not as if the Indian government has been unaware. It risks considerable national embarrassment if it were not done."

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