Delhi CM launches ‘MLA on Wheels’, biogas plant, new varsity building

The vehicle with staff and Wi-Fi will address citizens’ issues on the spot. Delhi CM also inaugurated a biogas plant and a new Ambedkar University building.

Chief minister Rekha Gupta on Saturday launched Delhi’s first mobile outreach initiative, “MLA on Wheels – Rekha Sarkar Aapke Dvaar,” from her office on Old Pankha Road in Janakpuri constituency. The programme is designed to give citizens direct access to government services and address grievances on the go, officials said.

Mobile office to reach women, elderly, and disabled with easy grievance redress. Gupta also opened Delhi’s first cattle-dung biogas plant at Nangli Dairy. (Sanchit Khanna/HT)

The launch was part of the Seva Pakhwada fortnight, organised to mark Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s birthday from September 17 to October 2. Gupta also inaugurated a biogas plant at Nangli Dairy Colony on Najafgarh Road and a new academic building at Dr BR Ambedkar University on Saturday.

“The main objective of the ‘MLA at your doorstep’ initiative is to bring governance closer to the people, removing the need for them to visit government offices to resolve their concerns,” Gupta said.

Delhi education minister Ashish Sood said the mobile office will travel across the constituency, register grievances, and forward them to the concerned departments. “The vehicle is equipped with a laptop, stenographer, and clerk to ensure that citizens’ concerns are properly recorded and passed on to the MLA for prompt action. Extensive research showed that no other mobile office system like this exists in the country,” he said.

The vehicle will feature a computer operator, Wi-Fi, microphones, and seating for up to 10 people, enabling it to travel anywhere and hear public grievances. Gupta highlighted that the service will particularly benefit mothers, women, the elderly, and persons with disabilities, who often face difficulties reaching government offices.

Gupta also inaugurated the country’s first 200 metric tonnes-per-day cattle-dung-based biogas plant at Nangli Dairy. “This plant will not only keep the area clean but also provide income to local dairy owners. It will produce compressed natural gas and fertilizer from cow dung and other dairy waste, which would otherwise end up in the Yamuna,” she said.

She added that more such plants are planned across Delhi. The agency responsible will collect dung at ₹0.65 per kilogram, and the remaining biogas slurry will serve as a natural fertilizer to improve soil fertility. The project, initiated in December 2018 by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, was executed by M/s CEID on a design, construction, finance, operation, and transfer model.

Built at an estimated cost of ₹16 crore, the Nangli Dairy plant processes waste from approximately 13,000 cattle at Nangli Dairy and 7,000 cattle at Kakrola Dairy, producing roughly 200 metric tonnes of dung daily. The biogas/CNG will be supplied to IGL through pipelines, generating about 14,000 cubic metres of raw biogas and 5.6 tonnes of purified compressed biogas per day. The facility occupies 2.72 acres of land.

At Dr BR Ambedkar University’s Karampura campus, Gupta inaugurated the newly constructed Swami Vivekananda Bhavan and reiterated her government’s commitment to making Delhi a premier education hub for students from India and abroad. “Our aim is to ensure that both Indian and international students choose Delhi as their first preference for higher studies,” she said.

Sood recalled that Ambedkar University began in 2008 with just 19 students; today, over 5,500 students are enrolled in 73 different programmes.