Delhi govt proposes to make metro and bus travel free for women in the national capital: Kejriwal
New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal Monday said his government proposes to make metro and bus travel free for women in the national capital.
The proposal will be implemented within 2-3 months, he said. The move comes ahead of the assembly elections scheduled early next year.
"Women will be given free rides in DTC, cluster buses and the Delhi Metro. The government will bear their travel expenses," Kejriwal said at a press conference.
For the remaining part of this financial year, the cost of this comes to Rs 700-800 crore, he said.
Kejriwal said he has asked officials to study the proposal. The government has also sought feedback from the public. Officers have been given a week to prepare a detailed report after which a proposal will be brought in the cabinet, he said.
The step will not lead to congestion in the Delhi Metro, as the daily ridership will increase by just one lakh. Currently, 25 lakh people travel by metro daily, he said.
He also said that his government accords top priority to women safety and has passed a tender to install 1.50 lakh CCTV cameras across the city.
"A survey for 70,000 CCTVs has been completed and these will be installed by December. A proposal for another 1.40 lakh cameras in under consideration," he said.
As many as 1.50 lakh CCTV cameras will be installed in government-run schools by November, Kejriwal added.
At a public meeting on Saturday, the chief minister had said his government was considering to make metro and bus travels free for women in Delhi "to encourage them to use public transport".
Kejriwal had also said his government is in touch with city's power regulator to bring down fixed charge component of electricity bill.
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Telangana CM urges Amit Shah to increase sanctioned strength of IPS officers in state
Hyderabad (PTI): Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy met Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi on Wednesday night and urged him to increase the sanctioned strength of IPS officers to the state in view of its growing administrative and security needs.
The two leaders also discussed the recent surrender of several senior Maoist leaders before the Telangana Police and other issues.
"During the meeting, the two leaders discussed the issue of Maoist surrenders and their rehabilitation. The chief minister informed Shah that significant improvements in policing have taken place in Telangana over the past two years," an official release here said.
Highlighting that 591 Maoists have laid down their arms and joined the mainstream of society during this period, the chief minister said the state government was providing them compensation and rehabilitation assistance as per the rules.
He requested the Union home minister to extend financial support from the central government for development works in the backward regions of the state.
Reddy also urged Shah to increase the sanctioned strength of IPS officers to the state from 83 to 105 in line with the state's growing administrative and security needs, the statement said.
The first cadre review after the formation of Telangana was conducted in 2016, while the next review, due in 2021, was delayed and finally carried out in 2025. Even then, only seven additional IPS officers were allocated to the state, the chief minister informed Shah and requested that the third cadre review be conducted in 2026 as per the schedule.
Reddy explained that Telangana, like the rest of the country, is facing several modern challenges, including cybercrime, drug trafficking, white-collar crimes, and other emerging security threats.
He highlighted the reorganisation of the Hyderabad, Cyberabad, and Malkajgiri Police Commissionerates, the proposed formation of the Future City Commissionerate and the rapidly growing population in Hyderabad to underline the increasing administrative requirements of the state.
