Delhi govt plans to make metro & bus travels free for women: Kejriwal
New Delhi: With Assembly polls due early next year in the city, the Aam Aadmi Party government is considering to make metro and bus travels free for women in Delhi "to encourage them to use public transport".
At a public meeting in New Delhi Saturday, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal also said his government is in touch with city's power regulator to bring down fixed charge component of electricity bill.
"The government is considering to waive fare for women in DTC buses and Delhi Metro to encourage them to use public transport in view of their safety. An announcement in this regard will be made on June 3," the chief minister said at the public meeting in New Delhi.
A Delhi government official said Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot has already taken meetings to discuss various aspects of fare-waiver to women in all public transport buses -- run by DTC and DIMTS -- and Delhi metro.
However, Transport Department officials point out that while allowing free travel in Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) and cluster buses run by the Delhi Integrated Multi Modal System(DIMTS) may not be difficult, it will be "challenging" to do so in Metro trains.
The Delhi government and the Centre are 50:50 equity partners in the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation.
An official pointed out that the Delhi government and the centre's Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry have not been on the same page over several issues related to metro, including fare hike and Phase-IV of the Metro network.
"Besides other factors like technical and financial feasibility of such a move, the persisting disagreements between the two sides may also play a crucial role in going ahead with the proposal for giving free ride to women in Metro trains," said a senior official.
Chief Minister Kejriwal also claimed that the fixed charge component of power tariff were raised by the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Authority (DERC) last year "without consulting" the Delhi government.
"Next month new tariff is to be fixed. We have asked the DERC to bring back fixed charges to previous levels and they are likely to agree to it," he said.
The monthly fixed charges were raised for domestic consumers having up to 2 KW load from Rs 20 to Rs 125. The Delhi government provides subsidy to such consumers. However, in other categories, consumers pay higher fixed charges.
The hike in fixed charges for other slabs were -- for 2-5 kw, from Rs 35 to Rs 140; 5-15 KW, Rs 45 to Rs 175; 15-25 kw, from Rs 60 to Rs 200; and for more than 25 KW, from Rs 100 to Rs 250.
In the just-concluded Lok Sabha polls, the AAP won only one seat out of over 40 it contested in nine states and Union Territories. The poll results came as a jolt to the party as it builds up for the assembly elections in Delhi early next year.
Stung by the dismal performance, the AAP government swung into action just a day after the Model Code of Conduct was lifted with Chief Minister directing his ministers on May 27 to speed up work on flagship schemes like Mohalla Clinic, procurement of buses and the CCTV project.
Senior Aam Aadmi Party leader Gopal Rai has, however, has dismissed suggestions that the LS poll results would have an impact on Delhi assembly elections, asserting there is no alternative to Kejriwal in the national capital.
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Ensure paid holiday for postal staff on polling day in Kerala: John Brittas writes to Scindia
New Delhi (PTI): CPI(M) Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas on Sunday wrote to Union Minister of Communications Jyotiraditya Scindia, seeking his urgent intervention to ensure that postal employees in Kerala are granted a statutory paid holiday on April 9 for the Assembly elections in the southern state.
In his letter, Brittas expressed serious concern over the Kerala Postal Circle’s instructions to treat all postal employees as “absentee voters in essential services (AVES)”, directing them to opt for a postal ballot within an “extremely limited” timeframe.
The Department of Posts operates under the Ministry of Communications. Along with the Department of Telecommunications, it is one of the two main sections within the ministry headed by Scindia.
In his letter, Brittas pointed out that the circular dated March 19 required the collection of Form 12D by March 20 (Eid al-Fitr), and submission of the compiled details at the respective collectorates by March 22 (Sunday), both holidays in Kerala, making meaningful compliance difficult and raising apprehensions about the “arbitrary” nature of the directions.
The CPI(M) leader also pointed out that the Election Commission, in a communication dated March 16, reiterated the requirement under Section 135B of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, that every person employed in any establishment and entitled to vote shall be granted a paid holiday on the polling day, without any deduction or abatement of wages.
He said even where certain services are treated as essential, the long-standing administrative practice has been to maintain only minimal required operations on polling day, without denying employees the opportunity to vote in person.
Brittas argued that in some other states going to polls this month, including Assam, most postal employees have been granted a holiday on polling day, in accordance with the statutory provisions.
During the 2021 Kerala polls, postal establishments had observed a holiday on polling day, subject only to limited essential arrangements, he claimed.
The present deviation, Brittas said, raises concerns about inconsistency in the application of law and the avoidable curtailment of the democratic rights of employees.
Stating that the right to vote lies at the core of India's democratic framework, Brittas urged Scindia to examine the matter urgently.
“Given the proximity of the polling date, I earnestly seek your kind indulgence to have the matter examined on priority, and to issue urgent directions to the postal authorities in Kerala to ensure that the statutory entitlement of postal employees in Kerala to a paid holiday on the day of polling is duly ensured,” Brittas said in the letter.
The 140 seats in the Kerala Assembly will go to polls on April 9, and the results will be out on May 4.
