New Delhi, 19 December (H.S.): Delhi Cabinet Minister Ashish Sood dismissed allegations made by Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders regarding air pollution, stating that pollution is not a seasonal or recent issue. Addressing a press conference at the Delhi Secretariat on Friday, Sood said, “Delhi does not have an isolated climate; its pollution is largely linked to neighbouring states. Yet, some ‘jobless politicians’ continue to criticise the government without understanding the facts.”
Ashish Sood asserted that it is well-known how the previous AAP government focused more on publicity than on grounded action against pollution. “They launched showpiece campaigns like odd-even and ‘Vehicle Off’ which were purely symbolic and delivered no concrete results. Meanwhile, municipal corporations were denied timely funds, sanitation workers were neglected, and no serious work was done on permanent infrastructure or technological solutions,” he added.
Highlighting the current government’s efforts, Sood said, “Under the leadership of Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, our government is not just making promises — we are implementing tangible and continuous actions. To prioritise children’s health, air purifiers will be installed in 10,000 school classrooms. The Electric Vehicle (EV) policy is being enforced vigorously. Work to eliminate the Bhalswa landfill is progressing at full pace. We are strengthening municipal corporations, improving sanitation systems, and giving due attention to sanitation workers’ rights, resources, and safety — focusing on long-term and sustainable solutions, not temporary emergency measures.”
Sood further remarked, “If AAP genuinely wanted to reduce air pollution, they should have strengthened public transport and brought in modern cleaning technology. Over the past 11 years, AAP did nothing meaningful to curb pollution. They didn’t even pay sanitation workers on time. They had funds for advertisements but not for public transport — a fact even noted by the Supreme Court.”
Criticising AAP leaders for invoking former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s policies, Sood added, “Some jobless leaders recently claimed that Kejriwal had adopted a ‘scientific’ approach to tackle air pollution through the Odd-Even scheme. But the National Green Tribunal (NGT) had reprimanded him for that approach. NGT said he had a hundred options, yet he always chose Odd-Even. This proves that AAP has done nothing but politicize the issue of pollution, while our government continues to take decisive and result-driven measures to eliminate it.”
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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
