India's Sports Minister Anurag Thakur is optimistic about India's chances and ability to host the 2036 Olympic Games. He said the country has the necessary funds and resources to beat other contenders. The minister also dismissed criticism that it would be better to spend money on welfare programs.
In addition to India, Germany, Poland, South Korea, Hungary, Turkey, Denmark, Egypt, Canada, Indonesia, Mexico, Qatar and Saudi Arabia are among the countries that have joined the 2036 Olympic Games, either announcing their interest in joining or likely to join.
Thakur believes that the money needed for the Olympics is not worth mentioning for India, and his confidence comes from India's rapid development and rise as a great power: "Last year we spent 100 trillion rupees on capital and a year ago it was 75 trillion rupees. This year it is Rs 110 trillion. Sports infrastructure is less than Rs 50 billion, even if it rises to Rs 200 billion, it can be done. ”
Brazil spent $11.1 billion to host the Rio 2016 Olympics, while Tokyo spent $12.9 billion for the 2021 rescheduled Games. When Thakur was asked if the money could be better spent on welfare programs, he said it would be better for the poor and marginalized to host the Olympics.
Thakur defended: "I'll give you an example. When the Indian Premier League cricket started, it provided employment to a lot of people in the last month or two, not thousands, but 100,000. It adds money to our economy. Countries like India will rise from hosting the Olympics. ”
However, the biggest minus in India's bid to host the Olympics is doping, which is the second worst country in the World Anti-Doping Agency's 10-year global study of doping among minors. In addition, India has the highest percentage of countries that have tested more than 2,000 samples in the world for failing a doping test.