The Lieutenant Governor’s Office released an official statement on Tuesday, accusing the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Delhi of misleading and deceiving the public regarding the implementation of the odd-even scheme to address the deteriorating air quality in the national capital.
The statement declared that the AAP government’s recently announced odd-even scheme aimed at combatting air pollution post-Diwali was primarily an attempt to divert attention away from the ongoing severe crisis in the capital caused by air pollution. It revealed that the decision to implement the odd-even scheme, as a part of measures under GRAP-IV (Graded Response Action Plan), was not approved by Minister (Environment) Gopal Rai.
Furthermore, the statement clarified that Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s office had deferred the decision regarding the odd-even plying of vehicles since the CM was out of town at that time. The released statement also outlined various proposals, including the discontinuation of physical classes up to class XI, conducting lessons online, and operating public, municipal, and private offices at 50% strength.
Although Gopal Rai and the Chief Minister approved all the proposals, they sought expert advice before deciding on the implementation of the odd-even vehicle scheme. Subsequently, the file was sent to the LG Secretariat for approval. The LG Secretariat has raised concerns over this deliberate misrepresentation and conveyed them to the CM Office.
In response, Gopal Rai explained, “The government has decided to implement the Odd-Even Vehicle Scheme, and we have seen some observations in the media regarding that. After studying the Supreme Court’s order, we will create detailed plans and inform everyone. We will incorporate the Supreme Court’s orders into the detailed planning.”
The government had initially made the decision to implement the scheme on November 13 but decided to finalize the details after studying the Supreme Court’s order.