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Delhi govt to suspend non-essential services in its departments
New Delhi:
New Delhi:
The Delhi government is working on a plan to shut till March 31 some of its departments catering to non-essential services and allow employees to work from home to prevent a possible community spread of the novel coronavirus in the city, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Thursday.
Kejriwal discussed the proposal with lieutenant-governor Anil Baijal in a meeting on Thursday afternoon and he approved the scheme, officials in the L-G office confirmed.
“It was agreed that all activities of the Delhi government will be segregated into essential and non-essential services. Further, all non-essential activities shall remain suspended. However, all employees will be available for work from home telephonically and online if need be,” a statement from the L-G’s office read.
Departments catering to essential services include health, food and civil supplies, Delhi Jal Board, the Delhi Fire Services and so on.
Some departments categorised as catering to non-essential services include tourism, art and culture, languages, and development departments
“Non-essential services will be stopped but the details are still being worked out,” Kejriwal said at a media conference after meeting the L-G.
The CM said a formal announcement will be made on Friday about services and departments in which work would be suspended.
The chief minister, while appealing to people to avoid stepping out of their homes, urged private sector firms to permit employees to work from home.
“Stay at home as much as you can and work from home. I want to appeal to the private sector institutions to provide work-from-home permits to their employees. Senior citizens are the most vulnerable, and I want to appeal to them to stay at home and avoid going out at all hours,” Kejriwal said.
Staggering office timings for some departments, like it was done during the odd-even road rationing scheme when air pollution had peaked in the city, is also being explored, an official said on condition of anonymity.
The proposal comes a day after a delegation of the Delhi Government Employees’ Welfare Association (DGEWA), met Kejriwal to demand a week’s leave. They submitted a memorandum, stating around 2.5 lakh work with the city administration and most of them are engaged in public dealings, making them vulnerable to infection.
The association suggested that the government can completely shut 86 departments—including art, culture and languages, tourism, development and education.
It had also proposed that 68 government offices should be allowed to function on alternate days, while registrar and motor licensing offices can be closed because property registration and driving licences can happen later.
Umesh Batra, general secretary of the DGEWA welcomed the move. “The orders have not been issued yet, so we do not know whether our demand has been fulfilled or not. Nevertheless, we welcome the announcement made by the CM,” he said.
