In the backdrop of severe air quality in the national Capital, Delhi Congress president Arvinder Singh Lovely on Wednesday charged the Central and Delhi Governments with deliberate neglect of the people of the city.  Moreover, leaders of both these Governments were busy in election campaigning in other states, instead of tackling Delhi’s woes, he said.

The State Congress president made these claims after convening a meeting of Delhi Congress’ ‘Shadow Cabinet’, consisting of former Ministers of the Congress Government, at the DPCC office here to discuss air pollution in Delhi.

Two resolutions were also unanimously passed at the meeting.  The first resolution requested the Lt. Governor and the Delhi Chief Minister to convene an all-party meeting to discuss air pollution.  Second resolution sought setting up of a high-powered monitoring committee headed by a Supreme Court judge, and consisting of Environmental experts and Civil Society.

Addressing a press conference, Lovely said it was the duty of the Delhi Congress, as a responsible Opposition party, to wake up the sleeping BJP and AAP Governments, as the Central and Delhi Governments lacked a holistic policy to tackle  air pollution. He said even the Delhi Cabinet did not bother to discuss the matter, and Congress did not want to leave the people to their own fate, but come up with a solution.

Lovely said the primary reason for Delhi’s air pollution was the Delhi Government's failure to expand the DTC bus fleet and its failure to ensure last mile connectivity to metro, because of which more two-wheelers hit the roads in large numbers, boosting the air pollution levels.