NEW DELHI (Metro Rail News): The Delhi government led by Arvind Kejriwal faced criticism from the Supreme Court on Monday for claiming to have no money to fund the construction of two Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) corridors. The court emphasized the importance of this development project. The RRTS project aims to connect Delhi with Meerut, Alwar, and Panipat through semi-high speed rail corridors. The project is being carried out by the National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC), a joint venture between the central government and the respective states.
While the Delhi-Meerut corridor is already underway, the Kejriwal government agreed to pay ₹1,180 crore for its share of the costs. However, the government refused to share the financial burden for the remaining two stretches, citing a lack of funds. In response, the Supreme Court provided the Delhi government 2 weeks to present the details of its advertising expenses.
The Delhi government’s counsel informed the court that the paucity of funds hindered its ability to contribute to the RRTS projects connecting Delhi with Alwar and Panipat. The court then requested information on the funds allocated for advertisements over the past three financial years. The Delhi government’s lawyer stated that the government had requested the Centre to bear its share of approximately ₹5,000 crore for the two corridors. There are no funds available due to financial constraints worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic and the discontinuation of GST compensation from the centre, said the government’s lawyer.
The Delhi government had previously used funds from the environment compensation charge (ECC) collected from polluting trucks and goods vehicles to contribute to the Delhi-Meerut corridor. The government proposed using the same funds for the remaining project corridors, but the court was not inclined to approve this approach.
In March 2019, the Delhi government had paid ₹265 crore from the ECC fund as the first installment for the Delhi-Meerut corridor, and the court had allowed an additional withdrawal of ₹500 crore in April. However, this time, the court directed the Centre and all concerned state governments to allocate suitable budgets for the entire project.
The RRTS aims to provide swift and reliable travel across the National Capital Region while reducing vehicular pollution. The project is monitored by the court as part of the MC Mehta case addressing air pollution in Delhi.
The Delhi-Meerut corridor is expected to be operational by 2025, while the Delhi-Alwar corridor is awaiting approval from the Centre and the Delhi-Panipat corridor is awaiting the nod from the Delhi government.
Kejriwal is a thief and a useless Chief Minister