AAP 1 year in office: Delhi CM successful in executing major policies
Despite lieutenant-governor Najeeb Jung’s strong dissent over transfers and postings of bureaucrats and other decisions of the AAP government, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal has successfully managed t
Despite lieutenant-governor Najeeb Jung’s strong dissent over transfers and postings of bureaucrats and other decisions of the AAP government, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal has successfully managed to implement some key policies which have directly impacted the day-to-day living of a common man during his one year in office in the national capital.
Mr Kejriwal and his Cabinet colleagues will be celebrating one year in office on Sunday by organising a “telethon” in which they will answer calls from the people of Delhi to get their feedback on a host of issues and policies concerning the national capital.
Soon after he took over charge of the Delhi government, Mr Kejriwal fulfilled his first Assembly election promise by providing 50 per cent subsidy on power tariff to those households which had been consuming electricity up to 400 units every month. Not only this, the CM’s series of initiatives forced the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission not to hike power tariffs in the current fiscal year.
After power, the second major announcement from the AAP government was on water subsidy. The government gave free water to those households which had been consuming up to 20,000 litres every month.
The first phase of Mr Kejriwal’s odd-even car rationing formula earned him accolades even from rival politicians. Buoyed by the first experiment, the government has already announced it will implement the second 15-day odd-even phase from April 15. The terms and conditions for the second phase are almost similar to the first experiment. The only exception in the second phase is that the government has decided not to use private school buses for public transport. The administration has also succeeded in organising a car-free day in different pockets of the city on the 22nd of every month.
In a major relief to motorists who had been facing regular traffic jams in south Delhi, the government started dismantling the controversial Khanpur-Moolchand BRT corridor. The administration surprised one and all by saving Rs 350 crore from the amount sanctioned for the construction of three flyovers in the city. The money saved in the construction of these flyovers is being utilised for proving free medicines and diagnostic tests in all government hospitals.
One of the major achievements of the Kejriwal government has been the opening of swanky air-conditioned mohalla clinics in slum clusters. The administration also plans to open 1,000 such clinics in the near future. Tenders to this effect have already been issued and work on it is expected to start very soon.
In the education sector, the government is planning to add 8,000 classrooms to its schools by July-end. In addition, 45 new schools are also being constructed. The government has already doubled its budgetary allocation on education.
The government also took an aggressive stand against management quotas in private schools.
On the administrative front, the government is also being credited with taking measures for ease of doing business in the city. A senior officer said the events management industry, which had gone out of Delhi, has started returning because all procedures have been simplified. “All documents, such as marriage and death certificates, can be secured online and are delivered on the basis of self-declaration.”
Even though the Delhi police does not fall under the jurisdiction of the AAP government, Mr Kejriwal decided to provide Rs 1 crore compensation to the families of all men in uniform who sacrifice their life on duty. The compensation amount will also be paid to the families of those Delhiites who are serving in paramilitary and armed forces. The Kejriwal government has also been credited with providing enhanced compensation of Rs 50,000 per hectare to farmers who had lost their crop due to bad weather.