AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal and Delhi Chief Minister Atishi addressing a press conference.
| Photo Credit: SHASHI SHEKHAR KASHYAP
After assuming charge as Delhi Chief Minister, Atishi on Monday held her first joint press conference with her predecessor and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal, who promised to resume all “stalled” projects and complete road repair works before the Assembly poll in February next year.
Mr. Kejriwal also accused the BJP of plotting to “stall” development projects and said once re-elected, the AAP government will launch new initiatives.
“In the past year, our Ministers were systematically imprisoned, halting important public welfare projects. But now, we are getting everything back on track,” he told reporters at the party headquarters here.
Ms. Atishi said her government has identified 89 roads stretching 230 km for recarpeting during inspections carried out by Delhi Ministers recently as part of the “pothole-free Delhi” initiative.
She said the government has so far floated tenders for 74 roads while the bids for the remaining 15 will be invited soon. “For patchwork, 2.53 lakh square metres of Public Works Department (PWD) roads was identified. I’m happy to announce that 39,500 square metres of patchwork was done in the past week and our aim is to complete the rest by October 31,” she said.
‘Routine works halted’
“As many as 6,671 potholes were identified during our inspection. Of these, 3,454 have been fixed and the remaining will be repaired in the coming days,” she added.
Mr. Kejriwal accused the BJP of conspiring to “even stop routine maintenance of roads” while he was in jail in corruption cases linked to the now-withdrawn Delhi excise policy for 2021-22.
“They [BJP] stopped many works of the Delhi government. I, along with CM Atishi, went out to inspect some roads. People were complaining that the roads in their area had been in bad shape,” he said.
Mr. Kejriwal said apart from the road repair works, the Delhi government will also address concerns over a shortage of medicines in its hospitals and Mohalla Clinics, the cessation of free medical tests, and the suspension of the “Farishtey Dilli Ke” scheme to provide free treatment to road accident victims.
He alleged that while the road repair work was stopped and old-age pensions halted, several home guards had their salaries cut. “We are now focusing on all these areas. I have requested CM Atishi to restart the projects that were halted, and resume all these initiatives,” he said.
‘Result of neglect’
Responding to it, Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva alleged that the city’s civic infrastructure took a hit under Mr. Kejriwal’s chief ministership.
“Now, Kejriwal is making Ms. Atishi claim that the roads were damaged during monsoon, but the truth is that it is the result of 10 years of neglect,” he added.
Mr. Sachdeva claimed that Mr. Kejriwal has violated constitutional and administrative norms by having the road inspection report and repair schedule announced from the AAP office instead of the Delhi Secretariat.
“By linking the road repair schedule with the election and announcing it from the party office, Arvind Kejriwal has made it clear that the Atishi government is remoted-controlled,” he said.
Published – October 08, 2024 01:39 am IST