Sweta Goswami writes on urban development, transport, energy and social welfare in Delhi. She prefers to be called a storyteller and has given voice to several human interest stories. She is currently cutting her teeth on multimedia storytelling.
Articles by Sweta Goswami
10k public buses in Delhi by 2023, 75% new vehicles electric: Kailash Gahlot
Delhi currently has 6,894 buses, of which 3,761, including one electric bus, are with the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) and 3,133 are operating under the cluster scheme
Updated on Jan 26, 2022 03:33 AM IST
Sweta Goswami, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Operating licence, surge pricing cap in Delhi govt’s draft cab policy
The proposed policy, Motor vehicle aggregators scheme, 2021, was shared on Monday in the public domain to seek suggestions from stakeholders and the general public
Updated on Jan 25, 2022 02:28 AM IST
Sweta Goswami, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Unease of doing business: Traders say curbs throwing future in doubt
There is a weekend curfew in the city since January 4 and restaurants and bars have been closed for dine-in service since January 11. None of these restrictions are in place in neighbouring Noida and Gurugram
Updated on Jan 23, 2022 01:49 AM IST
Sweta Goswami, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
CESL floats ₹5,500 crore tender for 5.5k electric buses
A PSU under the ministry of power, CESL has floated the single tender for 5,450 single-decker and 130 double-decker e-buses.
Updated on Jan 22, 2022 04:08 PM IST
RT-PCR test gets cheaper in Delhi: ₹300 at labs, ₹500 at home
- The cost of the gold-standard RT-PCR test has been reduced by ₹200 for home collection as well as for samples collected at private hospitals and labs.
Published on Jan 21, 2022 04:04 AM IST
Sweta Goswami, New Delhi
Use of biomass pellets to generate power picks up in NCR
This comes after the power ministry on October 8 last year notified a policy mandating all coal-fired power plants to use biomass pellets as at least 5% of fuel mix (with coal) to generate electricity.
Updated on Jan 21, 2022 06:09 AM IST
Sweta Goswami, New Delhi
Old drinking age despite new excise policy in place
- While the parts about the government quitting the retail business of liquor and restructuring taxes by charging it all upfront are explained in detail in the new policy, the document is silent when it comes to the other two aspects.
Published on Jan 20, 2022 03:46 AM IST
Sweta Goswami, New Delhi
Relaxations in Covid-19 restrictions unlikely this week in Delhi
There were a little under 12,000 cases on Tuesday, the second day this was under 15,000, and the positivity rate clocked in at 22.47%. Last week, Delhi’s health minister Satyendar Jain said some curbs, like the weekend curfew, could be rolled back if new cases stay under 15,000.
Updated on Jan 19, 2022 03:24 AM IST
Sweta Goswami, New Delhi
Delhi CM flags off city’s first e-bus, 300 more by April 2023
Launching the bus service, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said the Delhi government aims to procure at least 2,000 electric buses in the next few years, and termed it the beginning of a new era in public transport.
Updated on Jan 18, 2022 03:33 AM IST
Sweta Goswami, New Delhi
Govt allows use of existing power connections to charge EVs
India has 947,876 registered electric vehicles but only 1,028 public charging stations have been installed throughout the country
Updated on Jan 17, 2022 09:44 AM IST
Delhi: Draft policy pushes for up to 50% EVs in aggregators’ fleet by 2023
According to the draft policy, 10%of newly-onboarded two-wheelers and 5% of new four-wheelers will have to be EVs within three months of notification of the final policy
Updated on Jan 16, 2022 12:55 AM IST
Sweta Goswami, New Delhi
Six airbags mandatory in all cars sold from October 1, says govt’s draft order
Friday’s draft notification is a follow-up to Union transport minister Nitin Gadkari’s appeal in August last year that asked car manufacturers to “compulsorily provide a minimum of 6 airbags across all variants and segments of the vehicle”.
Updated on Jan 15, 2022 01:47 AM IST
Of 97 who died of Covid-19 from Jan 9-12, only 8 were fully jabbed
- According to data from the analysis, seen by HT, only 8.3% of the 97 dead had taken both doses of vaccines, while 19.6% had taken one shot.
Updated on Jan 14, 2022 07:12 AM IST
Self-test kits could lead to unreported cases, warn officials
Chemist associations in Delhi said the demand for self-test kits has increased in the past one week due to a spike in Covid cases.
Published on Jan 12, 2022 12:17 AM IST
Sweta GoswamiRisha Chitlangia, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Delhi govt to offer free online yoga classes to Covid patients in home isolation
Registration links will be sent to Covid-19 patients in the Capital, where they can register for the classes and book their preferred time slots
Updated on Jan 11, 2022 03:13 PM IST
Sweta Goswami, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Covid admissions to peak at 46k: Experts
- Lieutenant governor Anil Baijal chaired a meeting of the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) on Monday to review the city’s preparedness for the Covid-19 surge across the country.
Published on Jan 11, 2022 03:10 AM IST
‘35 of 46 who died from Jan 5-9 were not jabbed’
- In all, 34 of the 46 the deaths were among people who had comorbid conditions known to raise the risk of severe Covid.
Published on Jan 11, 2022 01:21 AM IST
Alok KN MishraSweta Goswami, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Delhi RWAs seek details on Covid cases, containment zones;say contact tracing not being done
On Monday, the national capital reported 19,166 new cases of Covid-19 — after conducting 766,70 tests — and 17 deaths. The positivity rate — the rate of samples that test positive from among the total tested — is now 25%, according to the Delhi government’s daily health bulletin
Published on Jan 11, 2022 12:08 AM IST
Sweta Goswami and Paras Singh
Transport ministry funding may cross ₹1.5 lakh crore
Records showed that since 2014, the capital expenditure of MoRTH has steadily increased compared to the revenue expenditure
Published on Jan 09, 2022 11:32 PM IST
Sweta Goswami, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
300,000 people in Delhi eligible to get Covid booster shots from Monday
On December 25, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the Centre’s decision to start precautionary third doses of Covid vaccine for high priority categories from January 10
Published on Jan 08, 2022 11:20 PM IST
Sweta Goswami, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Delhi govt expedites plan to augment Covid beds by 35K
According to the government’s daily Covid bulletin, tests went up from 65,487 on Tuesday to 89,742 on Wednesday, even as the positivity rate touched 11.88% on Wednesday
Updated on Jan 06, 2022 06:34 AM IST
Sweta Goswami and Soumya Pillai, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
In next stage of Covid-19 curbs, Delhi clamps curfew on weekends
The decision to step up restrictions came on a day when 5,481 cases (a positivity rate of 8.37%, although some experts are now coming around to the view that this isn’t the best metric for this phase of the pandemic), were added on Tuesday.
Updated on Jan 05, 2022 06:58 AM IST
Sweta Goswami, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Bad air: Taking cue from Delhi, public transport in NCR cities must shift to CNG
- Experts have time and again demanded that neighbouring states and the NCR cities shift their buses, taxis and autos completely to CNG to curb pollution
Published on Jan 04, 2022 08:00 PM IST
Delhi to impose weekend curfew amid spike in Covid-19 cases
State-run buses and the Delhi Metro will be allowed to operate with 100% seating capacity to avoid crowding at transport hubs
Updated on Jan 04, 2022 03:15 PM IST
Delhi may get its first public e-buses in February
The prototype bus that is expected to be pressed into service from next month is currently being tested by the state transport department and the vehicle manufacturer JBM Auto Limited
Updated on Jan 04, 2022 06:44 AM IST
Sweta Goswami, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Delhi gears up to inoculate 1 million teens as vaccine net widens to ages 15+
Vaccination centres for children will be open from 9am till 5pm, and will administer doses of Covaxin
Updated on Jan 03, 2022 12:52 AM IST
Soumya Pillai and Sweta Goswami
Delhi’s Covid-19 positivity rate nears 5%, cases mild
Delhi’s active cases increased to 8,397 on Sunday from 6,360 recorded until a day before, according to the government’s daily health bulletin. While Sunday’s tally was the highest single-day rise in since May 20, the test positivity rate stood at 4.59%.
Updated on Jan 03, 2022 07:33 AM IST
Sweta Goswami, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Delhi Covid cases rising rapidly. Arvind Kejriwal explains why there is no need to panic
Omicron variant in Delhi: Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said the number of active Covid-19 cases have tripled in five days to 6,360 but the number of hospital beds occupied by Covid-19 patients has declined.
Updated on Jan 02, 2022 02:48 PM IST
As Covid-19 cases rise, Delhi govt begins ramping up its home isolation infra
Delhi so far, has recorded at least 35 cases of the Omicron variant. The Capital recorded 102 fresh cases on Tuesday, and one death of the viral infection, according to the Delhi government’s daily Covid bulletin.
Updated on Dec 22, 2021 01:53 AM IST
Sweta Goswami, New Delhi
Delhi govt paid all dues to MCD, workers still unpaid: Sisodia
Sisodia, who is also Delhi’s finance minister, said since chief minister Arvind Kejriwal took charge of the government in Delhi, the administration has not only given MCDs their share of the budget, but also a loan of ₹6,889 crore.
Updated on Dec 21, 2021 12:54 AM IST
Sweta Goswami, New Delhi