Delhi follows Yogi: No holidays

Taking a cue from Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia has directed the Chief Secretary to scrap public holidays marking the birth and death anniversaries of eminent personalities.

"The Delhi government will cancel holidays on birth or death anniversary of eminent personalities. In this regard, I have issued an instruction to the chief secretary," he tweeted.

The announcement comes in the backdrop of the party's humiliating defeat in Punjab and Goa Assembly elections and in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi poll. The state government will decide the list on Monday, after which the Lieutenant-Governor's approval will be sought.

Sisodia lauded Adityanath for cancelling 15 public birth and death anniversary holidays."The Uttar Pradesh government has taken a good initiative. We should always be ready to learn from other states," he said.

On April 25, the UP cabinet decided to cancel 15 public holidays in educational institutions. "Instead, students in schools and colleges would be taught about the great personalities on these days," it had said.

As the Delhi government plans to implement the same policy, there will be more working days. The state government has, in the past, introduced various other schemes and plans to reduce dropout rates and increase enrollment as they try to improve school education.

Also shunning confrontation politics, after long, Sisodia appreciated the central government decision to ban red beacons. He stated that they ran a campaign of banning red beacons and took a pledge -- after coming to power -- that they will not use red beacons. Under the new rule, only emergency vehicles, ambulances, fire engines and police cars can use flashing lights from May1. In Delhi, politicians and government officials were using the beacons to bypass the gridlocked city traffic on official business and show off their importance.