Most important Standing Committee meeting of MCD reduced to mere drama: AAP leader Ankush Narang

Raising issues ranging from pollution to AYUSH department recruitment and sanitation workers, he claimed that `the BJP government has failed completely, arguing that traffic-related pollution could have been reduced by shutting off collection at MCD toll plazas and highlighting that the government is now sprinkling water at monitoring stations to falsely project lower AQI levels.

After the Standing Committee meeting of the MCD on Wednesday, House LoP Ankush Narang stated, "In the Standing Committee meeting, I raised the serious issue of rising pollution in Delhi. Today, Delhi's residents are being forced to breathe toxic air. I demanded a discussion on pollution in the House, but the BJP is not willing to hold a discussion. In Delhi today, three out of four people are falling ill due to pollution. Even without wanting to, Delhi's residents are inhaling smoke equivalent to 15 cigarettes a day, yet the BJP remains completely indifferent."

Alleging budgetary failures in tackling pollution, he continued, "There is a budget of thousands of crores to deal with pollution, which includes allocations from the Central Government, the Delhi Government, and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi. According to a report of the Central Government, even one third of this budget has not been utilised to reduce pollution. Then what steps have they actually taken to curb pollution? Delhi has a so-called 'four-engine' BJP government. The MCD, the Delhi Government, the Central Government, and even the Lieutenant Governor are all with the BJP. Despite this, all four engines have completely failed. Instead of reducing pollution, they are merely sprinkling water on monitoring stations to show lower AQI levels."

Pointing to public expectations and border congestion, Ankush Narang said that the people of Delhi formed the BJP government with great expectations, but today those same people are being forced to breathe poisonous air.

"I gave a suggestion to the BJP government that traffic jams stretching from half a kilometre to one kilometre are forming at toll plazas on the Rajokri, Tikri, Ghazipur, and Kalindi Kunj borders. Because of these jams, vehicular pollution increases sharply. To provide relief to the public, these toll tax gates should be opened so that traffic congestion does not build up, but the BJP has no concrete plan to protect Delhi's residents from pollution," he said.

Raising concerns over recruitment in the AYUSH Department of the MCD, he added that the BJP is about to pass a proposal in the AYUSH Department of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi under which paramedics and 'Panchakarma' staff are being recruited through the Government e Marketplace (GeM) portal, even though a vigilance inquiry is already underway in this matter.

"Issues of fake degrees, nepotism, and monetary transactions have come to light. Despite this, the Mayor gave advance approval, and now they are set to pass the proposal mandating recruitment only through the Government e Marketplace portal. The Aam Aadmi Party demands that paramedical staff be recruited through the DSSB because this concerns the lives of Delhi's people. Medical staff save lives, and if people without valid degrees are recruited, the lives of Delhi's residents could be put at risk," he claimed.

Speaking again during the Standing Committee meeting, he further said, "Despite a four-engine BJP government at the Centre, in Delhi, and in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, the party has completely failed to control pollution. Delhi's people are being forced to breathe toxic air. The situation is so bad that, even unwillingly, Delhi's residents are inhaling smoke equivalent to 15 to 16 cigarettes every day. BJP governments seem to be sitting idle, relying on God or the wind, because they have no concrete plan to stop pollution. Only sprinkling water at monitoring stations to show reduced AQI levels is nothing but an attempt to mislead the public."

He further claimed that employees who were recently given letters confirming their regularisation have still not received postings or increased salaries. "Workers from 1996 to 1997 who were left out are still not being regularised. During the meeting, I also exposed corruption within the MCD and stated that employees are forced to pay a 30 percent commission to officials to receive their post retirement benefits. I have evidence to support this," he revealed.

Referring to the Goa nightclub fire incident, the MCD House LoP said, "Twenty five people lost their lives in the fire, including four from Delhi. I am concerned that many restaurants in Delhi are operating without adequate safety standards and without valid No Objection Certificates, which could invite a major accident at any time. Strict action must be taken in this regard."

Questioning transfers in the Education Department, Ankush Narang alleged that the employees are being transferred arbitrarily through a slip based system without any criteria. "I cited examples where cancer patients and persons with disabilities, along with 25 other employees, were forcibly transferred despite not even applying for transfers. Additionally, raising the issue of Multi Tasking Staff employees, I said that after returning to work following a 33 day strike, their salaries and leaves are being deducted, which is a violation of their rights," he added. (ANI)