By IANS,
New York : Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit has said her government has “halted the rot of pollution” choking the Indian capital through a massive environment awareness campaign launched with people’s involvement.
Speaking during a round table conference on ‘Environmental Sustainability – A Millennium Development Goal’ convened here by the president and secretary general of the UN General Assembly, Dikshit said the quality of air in the capital has improved through making the public transport fleet substitute diesel with CNG, introducing the Metro rail system, creating bio-diversity parks and development of city forests.
She described all the Millennium Development Goals as development challenges for humanity and stressed on the need for close international cooperation and growth oriented environment for achieving these goals.
Dikshit focused on environmental sustainability during her presentation ‘Towards a Sustainable Delhi’.
She also talked about plantation of over one million saplings in Delhi in the last few years, which has led to an increase in the green cover.
“A massive environment awareness campaign has been launched with people’s involvement or Bhagidari as we call it, through 2000 school eco-clubs. They constitute the ‘Green Brigade’,” Dikshit stated.
“This brigade passionately propagates issues like abandoning plastic bags in favour of jute, paper or cloth bags, recycling of paper and water, adoption of solar water heating systems, conversion of incandescent lamps into CFLs and energy efficient appliances, setting up rain-water harvesting systems and replacing diesel vehicles by battery operated vehicles,” she added.
The chief minister further said that her government has introduced a diesel fee, and created an Air Ambience Fund on the “polluter pay” principle, so as to subsidize conversion of diesel transport vehicles into CNG and battery operated vehicles.
“We are adopting the concept of Green Buildings in all our major construction so as to achieve maximum harmony with nature and to reduce negative environmental effects. Our aim is to make the Commonwealth Games 2010, the Green Games. A new energy efficiency code for all buildings has now been made mandatory,” Dikshit added.