No passes: Delegates from Russia lose access

PANAJI

: A major gaffe by the organization committee meant that many members of the

Russian delegation

did not obtain access to the venue of the Brics Summit at Taj Exotica.

Some of the members told STOI that while 350 delegates from

Russia

were to participate in the event, a mere 80 accreditation passes were made available to the foreign delegation.

Lack of security and event clearance forced the chief executive officer of Russian firm Rostec, Sergei Chemezov, to reschedule and hold a briefing outside the official venue at Benaulim.

Russian sources said that though they had been waiting outside the venue for two days, the delegation failed to gain access to the resort.

“Our delegation is facing big problems with regards to entry to the venue, and pretty much only the senior delegates have access. The delegation size was just slashed,” a business delegate from the Russian side said. The Russians, however, bore the inconvenience sportingly.

STOI made several attempts to contact the ministry of external affairs (MEA), but received no response.