BackWill stop odd-even scheme if there are too many problems: Arvind Kejriwal
Kejriwal says the odd-even car restrictions in Delhi will be rolled out on a trial basis for 15 days
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New Delhi: Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Saturday that odd-even car restrictions in the national capital will be rolled out on a trial basis for 15 days.
Under the plan, cars with odd and even licence plates will be banned from the city’s roads on alternate days to limit vehicular pollution.
“There is a state of emergency in the capital city due to its ever increasing pollution level. To control that, I think banning the movement of a few cars is necessary. We need to figure out things before it is finally rolled out on 1 January. Intentions are just to control pollution and in no way do we want to trouble people. Hence, we have decided to keep the policy going for 15 days and if it does not go well, we will take it down," Kejriwal said at the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit in New Delhi. He was in conversation with Sanjoy Narayan, editor-in-chief of Hindustan Times.
However, Kejriwal specified that the odd-even traffic ban policy is one of the many steps his government announced on Friday to control pollution levels in the city, including the shutting down of Badarpur and Rajghat thermal power stations.
When asked about the fourfold salary hike of legislators in Delhi, Kejriwal said he was one of the 41 Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) lawmakers whose assets are over ₹ 1 crore. Questioning the lavish lifestyle and the huge bungalows of MLAs with lower salaries, Kejriwal said this move will curb corrupt practices. “The hike we have given is such that a person getting ₹ 18,000 will get ₹ 50,000. In addition to that, ₹ 50,000 is constituency allowance and the remaining amount is reimbursement," said Kejriwal.
About his relation with the Lieutenant Governor, Kejriwal said governing is no rocket science but he needs his own space. He said day-to-day interference saps one completely.
Citing various examples of situations where people felt unsafe, Kejriwal said his government is not responsible for safety since police does not come under the government.
When asked about similarities between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and him on using social media and radio, Kejriwal said the PM talks about “his mann ki baat" and he (Kejriwal) talks about “AAP ki baat".
Taking a dig at Modi’s foreign visits, Kejriwal said ever since he became chief minister, he has not stepped out of Delhi, whereas some people are touring the world. When asked if the Swachh Delhi mobile app was a way to improve relations with the centre, Kejriwal said he feels the centre and state government should work together for development and he has repeatedly asked the PM for cooperation but failed each time. “We got 50,000 complaints on the Swachh Delhi app and 42,000 have been solved already. This app will now also help to keep a check on polluting vehicles and trash burning," said Kejriwal.
The chief minister said that from 1 January, all PWD roads will be vacuum-cleaned and both sides of roads will have flower beds in order to reduce dust. The government is also planning to implement Euro 6 emission norms from 2017 whereas the centre plans to start it from 2019.
At the summit, Kejriwal also mentioned that Delhi does not get money from the centre. “Delhi gives ₹ 1,30,000 crore tax collection, whereas centre gives us ₹ 300 crore, so we are giving money to the centre; they are giving us nothing," he said.
Sounding confident about AAP’s win in the Punjab assembly elections in 2016, Kejriwal said he would not be surprised if what happened in Delhi will be repeated in Punjab.
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