Interview

Milestones in Good Governance
Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and the Delhi Government's Achievements

Dr. Ravni Thakur

Soft spoken, intellectual, principled and enormously popular are the first words that come to mind when one speaks of the Congress Chief Minister of Delhi, Smt. Sheila Dikshit. Born into a family of civil servants, Smt. Dikshit grew up in Delhi and graduated with honours from Miranda House. Married into the well-known family of freedom fighter and subsequently, Central minister, Shri Uma Shankar Dikshit, the Delhi Chief Minister entered politics after the death of her husband, a member of the Indian Foreign Service. She fought her first election from UP in 1984 before returning to her home town, Delhi. Though she never thought she would enter politics, today she finds it :

"Very satisfying because you can do things which you cannot do otherwise. My greatest satisfaction has been to change Delhi from a city going downhill into a modern capital. And I am grateful to our Party President for giving me this opportunity".

Smt. Dikshit has every reason to be satisfied. Under her stewardship, the face of Delhi has changed enormously. Not only have roads and flyovers sprung up in record time with little inconvenience to citizens, the Metro Rail Project has also been implemented because of the personal interest taken by her. The introduction of CNG buses has reduced pollution greatly and power cuts and water shortages have been tackled on a war footing. All this despite lack of cooperation from the BJP-run Central govt.

Smt. Dikshit’s government represents the modern face of India. An India replete, not just with the many strands of its own cultural edifice, but one that faces the West with equanimity because, like Delhi has shown, the rest of India can also modernize without losing its own cultural moorings. Led by the right people, we can create a civic space that rivals the cities in the West to which our young migrate in search of greener pastures.

In this interview, for which Smt. Dikshit very kindly took time out of her busy schedule, she speaks briefly about her tenure as Chief Minister, the goals that she set out to achieve and those that she hopes to achieve.

On Good Governance and Development

"The aim of any chief minister should be good governance. And this is something our Party President, Smt. Sonia Gandhi, has repeatedly emphasized." Good Governance means first and foremost, a focus on the overall development of the area. This is best done by respecting the Constitution and the law not by using the tools of the state to destroy the constitution as has been shown in Gujarat. Above all it means allowing the people to participate in governance and in development that impacts their every day lives. "I have tried to do this through my Bhagidari Scheme. This is a direct approach to the masses and goes back to the traditions laid down by Gandhiji and Nehruji that is a government which is responsive and participative".

Initiated after consultations with citizens welfare associations and NGO’s engaged in developing civic awareness, Smt. Dikshit put her ideas into concrete action by creating a Bhagidari Cell in the Chief Minister’s Office. This cell initially coordinated forums where daily issues like problems with water, electricity, garbage, etc., were handled in cooperation with Resident Welfare Associations. Progressively, the coordinating activities were decentralized to the office of the Deputy Commissioner Revenue’s office where more than 1,100 citizen’s groups have been mobilized to date.

The government’s response to the problems faced by citizens has also been sharpened by the active interest taken by the Chief Minister herself. The government has implemented the right to information act and more than 5,000 complaints have been handled to date by the public grievance cell that has been set up. The officer in charge of the case has to reply within 15 days otherwise they can be fined up to 100 rupees.

On Secularism

"Delhi is a multicultural and multi-religious society, in other words, a microcosm of India itself. To maintain peace and harmony in a city such as this makes it essential that the secular and democratic principles of our country be respected, and even more, implemented. The misuse of religion that is made by the BJP is not only divisive, ultimately it is short-sighted because they miss the basic strength of India - its diversity. If India is to achieve greatness then we must move forward as a whole not through the creation of separate identities for the sake of short sighted political gains".

On Environment

Smt. Sheila Dikshit is the first chief minister of Delhi who has made a sustained effort to control pollution. The "Clean City" award given to the government of Delhi on the 7th of May by the U.S. Government epitomizes the objective achievements of the Delhi government in this sector. Not only did Smt. Dikshit and her team of ministers and other party members, ensure that scooters, taxis and buses followed the CNG norm they also put in place the necessary infrastructure to make sure that CNG gas was available in the capital’s petrol pumps. The government has also made concerted efforts to implement water saving strategies and has undertaken widespread planting of trees under the Green Delhi scheme.

The Delhi Government’s Scheme for Women, Youth and Slum Clusters:

Smt. Sheila Dikshit has shown her ability to govern by bringing new and innovative ideas to tackle the problems that have plagued different vulnerable sections of society. Her principle of participatory government has meant the direct involvement of people in the schemes that the government chose and implemented. The Delhi government has initiated a special programme called Stree Shakti. This is an attempt to empower women, especially from the weaker sections. The Delhi Government has roped in NGOs and created a Gender Resource Centre so that concrete and systematic interventions in the sectors of health, literacy and education can help ameliorate the survival and income generating strategies of women. While regular health camps have been held for women, training centres to equip women for income generating activities have also proved successful. The Delhi Government realizes the central role played by women in terms of family survival and has tried to ensure that their tasks become easier.

The Delhi Government has also focussed special attention on the employment needs of youth. Schemes that provide training for self-employment and soft loans for young entrepreneurs, have met with great success. "We have to encourage both entrepreneurship and self-reliance in our youth", says Smt. Dikshit as she expands on the issue of unemployment. "Privatization has meant that more people will enter the private sector in the future and for that we must provide training and skills to our youth so that they can stand on their own feet."

A Look at the Future : A Demand for Full Statehood

Smt. Dikshit has several plans on her agenda and chief amongst this is the need to provide a humane and workable solution for the slum clusters from where a large number of Delhi’s workers provide services for the citizens of Delhi.

"I want Delhi to be a modern city in every way. And that is only possible if Delhi is given Statehood. And not the truncated agenda that the Central Government in cohesion with the State BJP has passed recently as an election stunt."

It is clear to most people that the Bill passed by the cabinet does not in any way fulfill the aspirations of the people of Delhi. Delhi is not being given full control, instead, the two-tier system with the Center controlling several key departments, will continue and the only thing that Delhi will gain is a massive financial burden. While taxes will be added to Delhi, the financial assistance given by the Center will be withdrawn, making it impossible for Delhi to govern itself or pay the salaries of its employees. Smt. Dikshit and her ministers have therefore rightly opposed this move and will continue their fight for achieving full and equal stature with the other States of India.

The Chief Minister of Delhi concluded her interview by pointing out how the: "Chief Minister is one amongst equals and his/her role is chiefly to lead by example through principle and by always keeping the welfare of people in mind".