Rekha Gupta says Delhi’s road to change begins with better basics, not hollow promises

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, speaking to veteran journalist Deepak Chaurasia, set out a decisive vision to rebuild the capital by focusing on core issues that have long been neglected. She declared that the road to a developed India must pass through a developed Delhi, and her government’s immediate mission is to deliver on basics—better roads and connectivity, cleaner air, universal water and sewer pipelines, stronger healthcare, and education reforms that position Delhi as a genuine knowledge hub.

Taking on the past government’s tall claims, Gupta said the much-touted “world-class” health and education models were hollow. She revealed that institutions like IHBAS lack MRI and CT scan machines, while Delhi’s hospital bed ratio is a fraction of WHO standards. Calling the Mohalla Clinics ‘a scam plagued by malpractice and inflated rents’, she cited newly tabled CAG reports that expose large-scale mismanagement in education, transport, and healthcare. “What was presented as a model,” she said, “was in reality a tragedy for Delhi’s citizens.”

On Delhi’s pollution crisis, Gupta outlined a bold and time-bound action plan: full electrification of public transport by 2026, incentives for private EVs, dust control through 1,000 sprinklers and 70 sweeping vehicles, smoke towers in high-rise clusters, and a green cover expansion with 7 million new trees. She assured citizens that within five years they will see clear results: “Delhi will not only feel the change in infrastructure, but also in intent. This will be an honest government that works among the people, solving their problems with sincerity.”