NDMC okays temple upgrade plan, pink toilets
NEW DELHI: The New Delhi Municipal Council has approved a series of infrastructure proposals aimed at improving civic amenities and women's safety, while also unanimously passing a resolution condemning the 1975 Emergency as a 'dark phase' in India's democratic history.
In a meeting chaired by PWD Minister Parvesh Verma, the Council cleared the purchase of five new CNG-powered road-sweeping machines to replace its ageing diesel fleet introduced in 2017-18. NDMC Vice Chairperson Kuljeet Singh Chahal said the Rs 6.69 crore proposal, funded with Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) support, aligns with the National Green Tribunal's restrictions on diesel vehicles.
The Council also approved the development of 37 pink toilets, one in each NDMC market,with facilities such as sanitary napkin vending machines, baby care spaces, drinking water and women staff for security and sanitation. Chahal said the move aims to create 'a safer and more dignified urban environment for women.' Civic upgrades in Jhuggi clusters and plans to enhance basic services around key temples—including Hanuman Mandir, Birla Mandir also discussed.
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Indian Express
31 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Vandita Mishra writes: Not just about the Emergency
Dear Express Reader, This has been a week of commemoration of the Emergency as a cataclysmic event in the distant past. This has been a week to acknowledge that the shadows cast by the suspension of democracy, 1975-1977, are long. Many of the challenges for a democratic politics are the same, and they have been routinised — the weaponisation of laws to shrink spaces for dissent and free expression, a politics of labelling and distrust, attempts by the Executive to undermine and subdue other institutions like the Media and the Court, demonisation of the Opposition. Other challenges are new, because in its long journey, democracy itself stands at a different milestone. At that time, when India's democracy was less than 30 years old, Emergency was the result of, and it contributed to, a waning of brightness — it capped a draining of the lingering idealism of a newly independent nation that had pledged to be not just a representative democracy, but one that abides by rules of the game laid down in the wise and layered Constitution it gave itself. The Constitution set up a mosaic of monitory institutions to scrutinise power, enforce accountability, enable checks and balances — political theorist John Keane has christened this new historical form of democracy, worldwide in the post 1945 era, as 'monitory democracy'. Today, 50 years after the Emergency, India's monitory democracy is showing signs of wear and tear. It is also dealing with the pressures of the age of communicative abundance. In a global context, Keane writes that 'historical comparisons show that the combination of monitory democracy and communicative abundance is without precedent. It produces permanent flux, an unending restlessness driven by complex combinations of different interacting players and institutions, permanently pushing and pulling, heaving and straining, sometimes working together, at other times in opposition to one another…' Even as this combination makes democracy more exciting and viral, it also has corrosive effects. It breeds cynicism, disaffection and distrust vis a vis Parliaments and parties, governing institutions and leaders. Parliamentary democracy is being publicly 'wrong-footed', says Keane, there is 'decay amidst abundance'. In India and elsewhere, this fraught juncture is now the site of the rise of a populist politics. 'We the people' becomes 'Me the people', there is a relentless search for the Other and the enemy within, and the winner takes all. The populist moment seizes on the prevalent disillusions, as much as it speaks to rising aspirations, to frame an agenda of anti-elitism. It also propagates a politics of anti-pluralism. The week in which 50 years of Emergency were marked ended with a rising — and disquietingly anti-pluralist — clamour that seems to give the lie to the self-righteous lip service to democracy over the last few days by the BJP-led establishment. An RSS general secretary set the ball rolling, asking for a discussion on whether the words 'socialist' and 'secular', added to the Constitution's Preamble by the Indira Gandhi government during the Emergency, should be retained. He was joined by the Vice President, who said that the change to the Preamble was a 'sacrilege to the spirit of sanatan' and the words were 'nasoor', a festering wound. A BJP chief minister chimed in: 'Socialism' and 'secularism' are Western concepts, have no place in Indian civilisation, he said. And two Union ministers added the weight of their office to the argument. This, when successive post-Emergency regimes have not reversed the Preamble amendment, even as other changes have been rolled back, and the Supreme Court has upheld it. Secularism was described as a 'basic feature' in the 13-judge bench Kesavananda Bharati ruling even before the Emergency-era amendment, and the non-justiciable Directive Principles of State Policy have been invoked to recognise that 'socialism' was an ideal for those who framed a Constitution for a society of great inequalities. It is evident that the real aversion is not to 'socialist' — in fact, on the broad direction of the economy, all post-liberalisation governments have looked the same, more or less. This choreographed controversy is about 'secular'. The Narendra Modi government, now in its third term, has presided over the steady challenging of the constitutional commitment to secularism as equal respect for all religions, and a spreading Hindu-isation of public institutions and spaces. The PM's conduct of the rituals of consecration of the Ram Temple at Ayodhya in January 2024 marked a turning point. It underlined the message that, amid growing polarisation, the religion of the majority community would now be a visible marker of the life of a diverse and multi-religious nation, demanding deference, if not prostration from all. So, at the end of a week like this one, is a question: Who is responsible for ensuring that the Emergency does not come again? Who is expected to take on the burden of an anti-Emergency politics that guards against attempts to chip away at pluralism and democracy? In the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, 'democracy-in-danger' and 'Constitution-under-siege' became electoral slogans and while the outcome saw a whittling down of the BJP government's numbers, it was certainly no mandate for the Opposition. Does that mean that the people don't worry, or worry enough, about the spectre of diminishing democracy? It is possible that for a people cynical about power politics, democracy's predicament is not a trumping argument because they see no good guys out there. And that for the optimistic and aspirational, the system seems strong and self-correcting enough, does not require their ministrations. It could be that when voters feel disrespected, or 'dis-esteemed', they are more likely to grant governments the licence to rule arbitrarily, and to look for strongmen with a steel fist. Or it could be, simply, that for all the talk about democracy-in-danger, democracy never really was on the election menu, because the Opposition was unable to make a case that was eloquent or vivid enough. Whatever be the real story of the 2024 Lok Sabha election, the onus is not, it should not be, on the vulnerable voter. Protecting democracy's letter and spirit is also a task too large to be left only to the Opposition — in fact, it must not be seen as a project that is partisan. Keeping democracy whole requires influential institutions and powerful stakeholders to take ownership of it, instead of putting it only on the Opposition or passing the buck to 'the people'. Till next week, Vandita
NDTV
an hour ago
- NDTV
'Clean Air Zone' Trial To Be Launched In Delhi's Nehru Park
New Delhi: In a step towards exploring science-driven solutions for cleaning Delhi's air, Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa and PWD Minister and area MLA Parvesh Verma on Sunday visited Nehru Park to review the feasibility of creating a pilot Clean Air Zone. The Delhi government is evaluating whether the installation of outdoor air purifiers across public parks can create micro-climates of significantly cleaner air, particularly during increased AQI days, said Sirsa. He said the pilot project is part of a larger exploratory study that could lead to Delhi's first Clean Air Zone, if found viable. Similar Clean Air Zones could be considered at Connaught Place, Khan Market, and other high-footfall locations. "These would be undertaken via Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) partnerships to avoid burdening public finances," the minister said. "We are conducting a study. The technology has shown promise in limited applications, and we want to understand whether it can work across larger green zones like Nehru Park. We aim to ask people if the technology is fit to work or not in their feedback," said Sirsa. "This is part of a proactive approach - testing innovation before scale, and only where it truly benefits people," he said. The 85-acre Nehru Park has been identified as a potential pilot site where 150 advanced air purification machines may be installed, subject to further analysis. These machines, already tested at select locations such as ISBTs and petrol stations, have previously demonstrated a capacity to reduce PM 2.5 levels in localised environments. Parvesh Verma, PWD Minister who is also the area MLA, underscored the government's commitment to holistic infrastructure and environment upgrades. "The Delhi Government, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision, is working tirelessly to transform the capital. I want to thank the Prime Minister for the Rs 1,000 crore aid provided to rebuild, repair and upgrade Delhi's roads and infrastructure," he said. "Sirsa is constantly on the ground, personally overseeing every development and pollution-control effort. His commitment is unwavering. Together, this government is working day and night to fulfil the PM's dream of a Viksit Delhi," he said. Senior officials from the Environment Department, NDMC, and PWD accompanied the ministers during the site inspection, which included interaction with morning walkers and joggers to gather feedback. The study aims to determine whether such technology can consistently lower AQI levels by up to 50 per cent within designated areas and thus enable safer use of public spaces throughout the year. Each proposed purifier is over 9 feet tall and uses advanced filtration technology to capture harmful PM 2.5 particles. If implemented in the future, these could cover a 400-600 square meter radius and offer year-round relief to walkers, joggers, and children using the park. However, deployment will depend entirely on the results of this technical and environmental feasibility study currently being conducted, said an official.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Mineral resources crucial for UP tobecome 1$ trillion economy: Yogi
Lucknow: Noting that the mining sector in UP has evolved beyond extraction, Chief minister on Sunday said that the mineral resources has become a key driver of economic growth, investment attraction, and local employment generation in the state. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Chairing the review meeting of the department of geology and mining, Yogi stated that the state's mining policy has now emerged as a model before the country and is set to play a crucial role in Uttar Pradesh's journey towards achieving a one trillion-dollar economy. He noted that mineral revenue recorded an average annual growth rate of 18.14% between 2021–22 and 2024–25. While the revenue from major minerals in 2024–25 stood at Rs 608.11 crore, in just the first two months of 2025–26, the state generated Rs 623 crore in revenue. Yogi was informed that lease agreements for major minerals such as phosphorite, iron ore and gold blocks were successfully auctioned in recent years. He directed officials to expedite the composite licensing process further and ensure timely identification of potential mining zones along with the prompt preparation of geological reports. Emphasising the impact of transparent and investor-friendly policies, the Chief Minister noted that prominent companies like JSW, Adani Group, Tata Steel and UltraTech Cement have shown a strong interest in the sector. The department undertook substantial work across more than 70 sub-indicators to secure top position in the State Mining Readiness Index (SMRI). A 100% implementation of the mine surveillance system was achieved in all mining districts, leading to significant improvements in the average timeline for environmental clearances and enhancing the overall transparency of regulatory procedures. Yogi added that the remaining reforms be completed within the stipulated time frame to ensure Uttar Pradesh attains 'Category-A' status in SMRI. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Officials revealed that 57 technology-enabled check gates were installed and 21,477 vehicles had been blacklisted for transporting minerals in an illegal manner. Systems such as the Vehicle Tracking System (VTS), colour coding and white tagging are functioning efficiently. Through the brick kiln operators, the state had generated a revenue of Rs 259 crore last financial year whereas in this year Rs 71 crore have been collected. Additionally, Yogi directed that the process of issuing new leases for minor minerals be completed during the monsoon season, enabling mining activities to commence from October 15.
