Delhi set for a 'makeover' as Venkaiah Naidu rolls out action plan

Aiming to give Delhi a facelift, Urban Development Ministry today firmed up an action plan to ensure a "clean and green" capital city, with major focus on sanitation, waste disposal and upkeep of public places, to improve the quality of life of its residents.

In a meeting with all stakeholders, Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu chalked out a detailed three-pronged strategy - short term, medium term and long term - to carry out the beautification drive by various concerned agencies.

Emphasising the need for concerted efforts to ensure a "clean and green" Delhi, Naidu noted that the general public perception of management of public places and utilities is very poor and needed to be changed through a special drive which is to be sustained till the objective is realised.

DDA will undertake tree plantation, streetscape improvement through improved signages, street lighting, street furniture and public conveniences besides revival of 59 water bodies and building of toilets on BOT basis in parks and public areas, said a senior Urban Development Ministry official. Removal of garbage, encroachments from roads and footpaths and repair and painting of the same, cleaning and facelift of urinals and declogging of drainage system to prevent water logging are some of the short term measures to be taken as immediate action by Delhi government.

The short term measures also include cleanliness drive in bus terminals, hospitals and educational institutions, commissioning of stretch of first phase of Interceptor Sewer and removal of green waste and litter from parks and gardens, as per the firmed up plan. 

For medium term measures, the action plan envisages notification of sanitation by-laws, outsourcing maintenance and management of toilets and urinals and provision of additional toilets on build operate and transfer (BOT) basis. Introduction of door-to-door waste collection service and segregation of wastes at household level and establishing waste processing and waste to energy plants at Ghazipur, Narela and Bawana are finalised in the medium term measures.

As far as long term plans are concerned, the Ministry decided on evolving zero waste management, green waste processing and introduction of GPS and IT based monitoring of waste collection and disposal system.

The official said DDA was asked to undertake measures to enable upgraded facilities through provision of 25 children’s parks, play fields in 80 parks, open gyms in 20 parks, shelters, food kiosks, solar lighting, open spaces and plazas. Knowledge Parks for children would be promoted by DDA and one such park for differently abled children will be developed at Sector-21 in Dwarka at a cost of Rs 14 crore.

DDA would also generate 1 MW of solar energy in the next six months for which an MoU has already been signed with Solar Power Corporation of India.

Naidu urged all stakeholder organisations to designate identified officers for coordinating and monitoring the clean and green activities for effective coordination, monitoring and regular reporting.

He said that various measures to be launched in the short and medium term need to be sustained on a long term basis to enable a 'makeover' of Delhi.

The Minister also asked the Delhi Government to evolve a strategy to address the issues relating to beggars, rag pickers, homeless and the migrants. Seeking people's participation in the special drive, Naidu asked all concerned agencies to ensure the involvement of the public.

The meeting was attended by Secretaries of Urban Development, Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation, Chief Secretary of Delhi government, Chief Executives of DDA, NDMC, three Municipal Corporations of Delhi, Delhi Jal Board and other officials concerned.