The "Red Light On, Gaadi Off" campaign has been the subject of a verbal spat between the Delhi LG's office and the AAP government that entered its second day on Friday. The former accused city Environment Minister Gopal Rai of "lying" about the campaign's launch date, while Rai questioned the sincerity of the lieutenant governor in regards to the pollution problem.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Delhi announced on Thursday that it is delaying the launch of the campaign because the LG's office has not yet approved it, setting the stage for a new confrontation with LG V K Saxena.
According to sources in the LG's office, Rai lied about the date of the campaign's launch, and the AAP allegedly did this to pressure Saxena into making a decision.
Rai, on the other hand, charged Saxena with fabricating excuses for delaying the campaign's approval and questioned his commitment to reducing pollution in the city.
The month-long "Red Light On, Gaadi Off" campaign aims to persuade drivers to turn off their vehicles' ignitions when they are stopped at traffic lights.
On Thursday, Rai asserted that Saxena received the campaign file on October 21.
According to the sources, Saxena was absent from work on Thursday due to prior obligations.
"Rai lied to the people of Delhi that the Red Light On, Gaadi Off campaign was to be launched on October 28. The file sent to the LG by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal clearly mentions the date of launch as October 31," a source said.
The sources further stated that the file was delivered to the LG secretariat on Friday, October 21, and that the offices didn't "fully" open until Thursday, October 27, which was the day after the weekend, a gazetted and restricted holiday.
"The files sent to the LG are not perfunctory in nature. They require proper consideration and application of mind," a source said.
Rai stated at a press conference on Friday that the LG had withheld the Red Light On, Gaadi Off campaign's file under the pretext of an absence from work. He has given three excuses for not signing the document. He should sign the document right away rather than giving excuses. We all have a responsibility to work together to combat pollution.
The plan, the minister said previously, was to commence the drive on October 31. He was speaking about the confusion over the dates on which the approval was requested from the LG and the date of the campaign launch.
"When the file was sent to the chief minister's office, the date of October 31 was written in it. But apprehending increasing pollution levels after Diwali, it was decided to to shift it to October 28 on the chief minister's instructions and the media was informed about it on October 22, which might have been overlooked by the LG, so he is resorting to such absurd excuses," he said.
On October 16, 2020, the Delhi government first introduced the "Red Light On, Gaadi Off" campaign.
Data from the Petroleum Conservation Research Association show that a person wastefully burns fuel every day while waiting at traffic lights for 25 to 30 minutes. Vehicle pollution will be cut by 15% to 20% if engines are shut off when the light is red.
Government estimates indicate that 28% of Delhi's PM2.5 emissions come from the transportation sector.
PM2.5 are fine particles with a diameter of 2.5 microns or less that can penetrate the respiratory system deeply, make it to the lungs, and then enter the bloodstream.
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