Rajya Sabha MP and Former Union Minister Shri Vijay Goel today congratulated Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley for presenting a comprehensive budget for Delhi. In his address to Parliament on Delhi Budget, Mr. Goel reflected upon how much damage has been done in Delhi in the last 50-60 years that added a huge responsibility on the Finance Minister.
 
Demanding Statehood for Delhi, Shri Vijay Goel said that, “Delhi Development Authority, Police and Traffic Police should be under Delhi Government and the that security of important places can come under Central Government. 
    
He said that, ”Every year more than 6lakh people from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh come to Delhi in search of employment for them there should be such arrangements in the national capital that it doesn’t put additional burden on the resources in the city and they can also be benefitted.
 
“Students from states like Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar etc come to Delhi in search of admission in DU colleges. However, if prestigious institutions like SRCC, St. Stephens, Hindu open their branches in other states then students will not have to come to Delhi. We should open more hostels for students migrating from other states. Also, Students passing out class 12th from Delhi relating to any state should be given 4 percent relaxation in admission criteria in Delhi University” said Goel. 

Shri Vijay Goel said that, Congress gave lollipop to residents of unauthorized colonies in the name of Provisional certificates but didn’t regulate them.
 
However, the Finance Minister kept a provision to regularize unauthorized colonies for which he should form a committee and should begin work on the same immediately.

He lambasted Congress for making provisions and plans for residents of JJ clusters which could not be implemented due to rampant corruptions in their tenure.
   
Reflecting on power distribution crisis in Delhi Mr. Goel said that, “Delhi needs atleast four more power distribution companies in Delhi to reduce monopoly and competition amongst them will benefit the public. Delhi just doesn’t need 30 percent subsidy only, but our aim should be to get power from these companies at lower costs”
 
He also said Delhi should be declared World Heritage City. We should initiate conservation projects of Delhi’s heritage monuments which can be further promoted for tourism purpose. 
 
 

Rajya Sabha MP and former Delhi BJP President Sh. Vijay Goel today welcomed the provision made for power subsidy in the Delhi budget presented by Union Finance Minister Sh. Arun Jaitley in Lok Sabha today. No new taxes have been imposed in the budget for Delhi which will provide great relief to the people of Delhi. The announcements made in the Delhi budget clearly show that  led by Prime Minister Sh. Narendra Modi,  the NDA government  is taking concrete steps to fulfil all the commitments which were made during poll campaign, said Sh. Goel
 
“When AAP ruled Delhi for 49 days, it did not make any provisions for the power subsidy to continue in the long run and hence consumers were burdened with higher electricity bills but now with provision of a subsidy ranging from 80 paisa per unit Rs 1.20 per unit for consumers using upto 400 units of electricity will go a long way in easing the burden on them,” said Sh. Goel. The bulk of consumers in Delhi will be covered by this subsidy, he added.
 
Sh. Goel also hailed the Delhi budget for announcing six new hostels for working women and sewage and water facilities for unauthorised colonies.  Both Congress and AAP had only paid lip service to the cause of unauthorised colonies in Delhi but the BJP government has shown its resolve to implement the welfare measures on the ground, said Sh. Goel.
 
  The Delhi Budget has also made provision for increasing number of beneficiaries of old age pension from 3.9 lakh to 4.3 lakh which will benefit the senior citizens.  In addition, the provision constructing a multispeciality hospital in rural area in South Delhi and setting up of a new medical college in Rohini will greatly improve the access to health facilities for the city residents. The provision for constructing public toilets in JJ clusters is another major step which would make difference in lives of lakhs of people living in these clusters in the city.
 
While the Congress government had shut down many government schools in the city and AAP government had failed to take any steps to address this situation, the union finance minister has announced setting up of 20 government schools. “This was a much awaited announcement as the education system in the city is crumbling due to complete neglect of government run schools in the past.”
 
To address the water crisis in the city, the BJP led NDA government has announced setting up of two new water treatment plants and a connecting canal between Munak canal and Haiderpur water treatment plant. This will go a long way in ensuring regular water supply to larger number of city residents, said Sh. Goel.

Rajya Sabha MP and former Delhi BJP President Sh. Vijay Goel today  thanked the  Union government for ushering Delhi into a new era of power and water reforms by allocating Rs 700 crore for the same in the union budget.
 
“ This was a much awaited step and will go a long way in ensuring  water supply to all Delhi’ites in the long run. More than half of Delhi residents do not get piped water supply regularly. The quality and quantity of water is under constraint in the Capital of the country and the water sector needs complete revamp for which neither the Congress government did anything nor AAP government took any steps.
 
Similarly the power reforms will help to have better and more transparent system of power supply. In absence of reforms during the Congress regime, the power sector in Delhi has become a major source of trouble for common people,” said Sh. Goel.
 
The Union  Finance Minister Sh. Arun Jaitley has also announced setting up of a “Hastkala Centre” in Delhi. This would add to the rich  cultural legacy of Delhi and put the city on world map in terms of promotion of Indian handicraft, said Sh. Goel.
 
The Budget 2014-15 has made a strong visionary statement and showed the intent of the government. “Women safety, urban renewal, employment generation and  use of technology have been given high priority. This is bound to benefit city like Delhi where all these issues are important,” said Sh. Goel.

Rajya Sabha MP and Former Union Minister Shri Vijay Goel today expressed his concern over the sky rocketing cut-offs of Delhi University. The confusion regarding FYUP and delayed admissions has resulted in confusion and tension amongst students and administration alike.
Shri Vijay Goel said that, “the tussle between UGC and DU over FYUP caused the delay in admissions. Now, additional criteria for admissions for colleges have further added to the mess. Delhi University should expedite the admission process and help reduce confusion amongst students and parents alike who are worried sick about the future of their children.”
Shri Vijay Goel said that, “It’s the average student that bears the brunt of such high cut-offs. About 2.7 Lakhs of students are competing for just 54,000 seats in 61 colleges of Delhi University. Where will the average student go? They are left with no option but to migrate to other cities to explore opportunities which are an additional financial burden on the family.”
Blaming 15 years of Congress misrule, Shri Vijay Goel said that, “The Congress failed to provide decent higher education opportunities for city youth. No new colleges opened in the city in the last 15 years which is matter of great concern.”
It was the BJP Government in Delhi that established Indraprastha University in 1998 to encourage technical education and even opened 5 new colleges. To cater to the growing rush, Delhi University should open up evening colleges and promote skill development. There is a need for youth-led development. It is not just about empowering youth with skill to ensure employment. Skill development also serves as an important tool which ensures nation building.
He said that, “Nearly 65 per cent population of the country is below 35 years of age and promotion of skill development will provide ample job opportunities to educated unemployed youth not only in India but abroad as well. Today, even developed countries have accorded priority to promoting skilled manpower.”
Shri Vijay Goel said that, “Delhi University should give 4% concession of marks in admissions to students passing out from Delhi schools. Also, to reduce the pressure of students applying from other states in DU can open their branches of its prestigious institutions in neighboring states. It will reduce the number of applicants in DU from other states and hence provide more opportunities to Delhi students to study in their own city.”

Rajya Sabha MP and Former Union Minister Sh. Vijay Goel today asked Delhi LG Najeeb Jung to take action against DISCOMS for their failure to upgrade distribution network resulting in long and unscheduled power cuts.
 
In a letter to the LG, Sh. Goel said, "Delhi’ites are facing one of the worst power crisis during these summers. The DISCOMS and the DERC have failed to perform their duties and they need to be penalised and pulled up." 
 
"The primary reason for these power cuts appears to be extremely poor distribution capability of DISCOMS. The DISCOMS, to my knowledge, has not spent required amount of funds to upgrade the infrastructure and hence we are witnessing the collapse of the distribution system in the Capital. In most parts of Delhi old transmission lines have not been upgraded or replaced in time, hence they are not able to take an increasing load," he added. 
 
The DISCOMS are supposed to get “prudence check” done regularly but they haven’t done it since 2008. The prudence should be done immediately and the details should be shared with public, said Sh. Goel. Prudence Check reveals the amount of money that was supposed to be spent by DISCOMS to fulfill their responsibilities and the amount actually spent by them.
 
Sh. Goel said, "The LG should immediately order the DISCOMS to make calls to their complaint numbers toll free. The complainants are often asked to hold on for several minutes and hence they are forced to bear the burden of call charges. This amount is substantial for a normal consumer given the frequency of power cuts and the number of times a consumer has to contact the DISCOMS’ complaint desks. Instead of consumer, it should  be the DISCOM which should bear the burden." 
 
Meanwhile to redress complaints, there should be enough number of complaint centres where complaints can be filed manually also. Senior officials of the DISCOMS should attend complaints at these centres especially when elected representatives such as legislators, councilors etc come to such centres.
 
Sh. Goel had met Union Power Minister Sh. Piyush Goyal along with a number of Delhi BJP MLAs to discuss the issue.

Rajya Sabha MP and former Delhi University Students Union President Sh. Vijay Goel today expressed deep concern over the chaos in admission for undergraduate courses in Delhi University. He also demanded that the students passing out from Delhi schools should be given relaxation of  4% in marks in DU admissions.
 
Sh. Goel who has been leading the campaign for the last few years to give higher weightage to students passing out from Delhi schools in DU admissions said, “The preference in DU admissions should  benefit students belonging to other states also provided they have passed out the Class XII examinations from a school in Delhi.”
 
“Along with the students, parents in Delhi, especially those from the economically weaker sections, also feel often harassed as in absence of enough seats in DU colleges they are not able to send their children to other states. Sending a student to study in other state is an emotional and economic drain. So there should be a conscious effort by DU authorities to accommodate as many Delhi students as it can. They should have the first right over admission in DU colleges,” said Sh. Goel.
 
“The current chaos we have witnessed over the last few days  in DU admission is result of the inertia of last 15 years of Congress rule in Delhi when not a single new college was added to the Delhi University. Today from Delhi alone more than 1.3 lakh students clear their Class XII exams. Add to this lakhs of aspirants from NCR and other states,  and total number of seats in DU undergraduate courses are stagnant at 55000 for the last so many years.”
 
Sh. Goel said, “To ease off the pressure on students as well as college authorities, DU should immediately start evening colleges in all its morning colleges. I will meet the Union HRD minister Ms Smriti Irani soon and urge her to take up the issue of setting up new colleges in DU,” he added.
 
Meanwhile the DU authorities should ensure that the students do not have to stand in long queues in hot sun. They should be treated with dignity and respect. After all they hard work they have put in their Class XII, they deserve better than what they are experiencing because of inefficiency of DU authorities.

Rajya Sabha MP and Former Delhi BJP President Sh. Vijay Goel today demanded that there should be a permanent and rational policy for nursery admissions in the school.

"With constantly changing rules, parents are on tenterhooks. The current system of nursery admissions is completely insensitive," said Sh. Goel.

"It is sad and unfortunate that Delhi does not have a proper admission policy which is parent and children friendly. This has created havoc. The Delhi administration is playing with future of lakhs of children. This can't be allowed."

Sh. Goel said, "The LG should have taken parents and schools representatives before framing the admission policy. But he did not take any other stakeholder in confidence and the result has been a big mess."

"We need to have better Govt schools and more schools to ensure admission for all nursery students smoothly. DDA has not allotted land for new school in the city for the last 10 years while the number of schools have increased manifold."

The situation on education front has deteriorated during Congress rule in Delhi. The AAP Govt in city further added to the mess on nursery admission. They did not take any initiative to set things right. In fact they added to the confusion.

"If the Govt. schools improve their education standards, more schools are opened in every area and a permanent policy of admission for at least five years is put into place which is formulated jointly by all stakeholders, then only we can find a solution to this issue."
 

Rajya Sabha MP and former Delhi BJP President Sh. Vijay Goel today  demanded that the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi should publicly reveal the action plan  to meet the challenge of  power and water supply for the summer season.  With frequent power cuts across the city and acute shortage of water in most of the areas, it is apparent that Delhi is facing one of the worst summer season.
“The LG has been claiming that he has taken several meetings to deal with this situation.  However, the situation at the ground level defies all claims of administration.  Delhi’ites are facing severe crisis of power and water. In absence of  an elected government in Delhi, the LG has the prime responsibility to  handle this situation,” Sh. Goel said.
“However, the way senior officials in Delhi administration have ignored the LG’s instructions to provide access to  Delhi’ites  for resolving their problems,  it is clear that the current administration is in no mood to deal with people’s issues. This is a grave crisis and should be dealt with immediately,” said Sh. Goel.
It may be recalled here that a few days ago. Sh. Goel had got in touch witnh the LG’s office suggesting holding of “Janta Durbar” after which the LG had  asked the Delhi administration officials to listen to people’s problems. However, the directive was not implemented by many officials.
Sh. Goel said, “To deal with the water crisis, the administration should work on war footing to get water in Munak canal and plug leakage of water from DJB pipelines.  Water tankers should be provided free of cost to areas in adequate numbers where DJB has not given connection. Special emphasis should be given to JJ clusters, rural areas, unauthorised colonies which are facing a harrowing time.  A special action plan is required for Dwarka where lakhs of city residents are  facing one of the worst crisis.”
Sh. Goel also demanded that accountability needs to be fixed with immediate effect on private discoms for unscheduled long power cuts.  The LG should also ensure that there is no move to hike power tariff as Delhi’ites have already experienced more than 72% hike in power tariff over the last couple of years.

Rajya Sabha MP and former Delhi BJP President Sh. Vijay Goel today  lambasted AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal for  indulging in cheap publicity tactics by alleging attack in Varanasi former Delhi minister Somnath Bharati. It may be recalled that Bharati has dubious l credentials as a spammer as well. He is also an accused in the case related to harassment of African women in Khirki Extension in Delhi.
“If people like Bharati are kejriwal’s close confidantes, that itself speaks for the AAP;s political agenda which comprises of creating lies, maligning others and attacking all those who criticise them for their non-performance in Delhi,” Sh. Goel said.
“I would campaign in Varansai and expose the nefarious designs of Arvind Kejriwal who is trying to vitiate the atmosphere in Varanasi. Kejriwal and his party adopted the same tactics in Delhi where he indulged regularly in publicity stunts. Now as he stands exposed in Delhi, he is trying to use same tactics in Varansai. But we will expose him there,” said Sh. Goel.
“Kejriwal and his colleagues have lowered down the level of political debate wherever they have gone. They make personal attacks, use objectionable language and instead of facts perpetuate lies. They are perpetuating communal politics as depicted by recent statement of their leader Ms Sahzia Ilmi on asking Muslims not be secular but to become communal. This is deplorable,” said Sh. Goel.
In Delhi, AAP and Kejriwal had got an opportunity to make a difference when they came to power. But we all know what did he do? He sat on dharna himself, created chaos, did not allocate required money in the budget for power subsidy and hiked rates od water tariff. And when he and his party started getting exposed, he ran away and tried to project himself as a martyr.
Due to such doublespeak and doule standards of AAP, the people of Delhi suffered his misrule of 49 days during which women were harassed and even media was not spared when it criticised Kejriwal.
Today if Delhi’ites are facing acute problems due to absence of an elected government, it is because of Kejriwal and his party’s opportunist politics where they ran away from Delhi hoping that they can do well in national politics.Sh. Goel said, “We will tell people in Varansai how Kejriwal and his party colleagues have created a mess in Delhi and left it unattended to rush to other parts of the country searching for votes . It is clear that Kejriwal and his party colleagues are not committed to welfare of the people. All they want is to perpetuate their self-interest.

Rajya Sabha MP and former Delhi BJP President Sh. Vijay Goel today demanded that the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi should immediately start “Janta Durbars” as in absence of an elected government,  people have no where to go to get their problems resolved.
 “I  am going to meet the LG personally and take up this cause.  The situation on all fronts has been deterioration whether it is power, water, education, public distribution system or public health.  Where can an average Delhi’ite approach if he or she has some problem which is not getting resolved  by the administration? Right now people have no where to go and they are feeling harassed. Junta Durbars   will provide an opportunity to average Delhi’ite to air their grievances at the top level and get them redressed,” said Sh. Goel.
He demanded that these Junta Durbars should be held atleast twice a week and immediate action should be taken by the LG to redress the grievances of common people. This arrangement should continue till Delhi has an elected government.
“ Today Delhi’ites are facing unscheduled power cuts in the name of maintenance by private discoms. They are also getting ready for another round of tariff hike. In addition with the onset of summers , there is a possibility that Delhi could face power shortage. There is no effort to ensure water supply for rural areas, JJ clusters, unauthorised colonies.   Areas like Dwarka in Delhi are facing an acute water crisis and there is no one who is ready to redress the grievances. The Delhi Jal Board and the Power department of Delhi government has failed to cater to these challenges,” said Sh. Goel.
People want to know how the existing administrative set up is planning to deal with the water and power crisis in days to come. There has been no indication so far from the Rajniwas about the course of action in this regard. People of Delhi also want to know how the taxpayers money is being spent by the LG and his team when it comes to welfare schemes for the people.