Aiming at creating history in the upcoming Assembly elections and making clear that the ruling party will contest the polls on development plank, Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, Delhi Congress president Jai Prakash Agarwal and party’s election in-charge Shakeel Ahmed released the compendium highlighting the party’s achievements in the last 15 years in the Capital.
Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit expressed hope that people of Delhi would give her another chance to complete the agenda. “It is to remind the people about the development that has taken place in the city in the last 15 years of the Congress rule. To remind the youth, who would have been three years old when Congress came to power and have now turned 18, how the city has transformed and about the achievements of the Congress rule," Dikshit said.
Claiming that her Government has taken a few historic steps, including giving ownership rights to resettlement people, regularisation of 895 unauthorised colonies, restricting the applicability of Section 81 of the Delhi land Acquisition Act, Dilli Annashree Yojana, Food Security Scheme which is linked with Aadhar, Dikshit stated that some works is left, which will be added to the party's manifesto.
Congress claimed that it has brought Delhi from the 'dark age' (in 1997) to a time when most parts of the city enjoy 24-hour power supply.
The unemployment rate has gone down, while there has been sufficient improvement in the per capita income, performance of State-run schools and medicare facilities have also become better under its rule.
Dikshit said, the achievements also show "our intentions and we have also compared our progress with our States." The booklet claims that Delhi's power tariff is one of the cheapest in the country. A comparison between power tariffs of BJP-ruled States, Ahmedabad and Bhopal, and Delhi has been published too.
"BJP should explain why they have not reduced power costs by 30 per cent in their States like Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. If we (the Government) do not get cheaper power then how will the States subsideIJ For 30 per cent subsidy, the cost is Rs 5,100 crore and for 50 per cent it is Rs 8,500 crore. The total development budget is for Rs 16,000 crore. To get votes will you stop development of hospitals, schools, roads, infrastructure, slum development," the booklet said.