Delhi govt’s ‘Red Light on, Gaadi Off’ campaign postponed: Rai

A state government official said the proposal needed the LG’s approval because the campaign involves spending — including paying Civil Defence Volunteers involved

Delhi environment minister Gopal Rai on Thursday said the state government’s ‘Red Light on, Gaadi Off’ campaign, which was scheduled to start on Friday, has been postponed as lieutenant governor Vinai Kumar Saxena is yet to approve the programme.

Delhi environment minister Gopal Rai flags off mobile anti-smog guns at Delhi Secretariat, in New Delhi, on Tuesday. (Hindustan Times)

“To prevent vehicular pollution, our government had successfully run the campaign in 2020 and after its success, we launched it in 2021 too... This year, we had planned to launch the campaign from October 28, but unfortunately, the LG has not approved the file on the campaign, which was sent to him by chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on October 21,” Rai said at a press conference, adding that as part of the campaign, around 2,500 civil defence volunteers were set to be stationed across 100 of Delhi’s busiest intersections to ensure people switched off their engines at red lights.

A state government official, who asked not to be named, said the proposal needed the LG’s approval because the campaign involves spending — including paying Civil Defence Volunteers involved — which Saxena needs to improve.

“The campaign includes 2,500 volunteers, banners and other signage. Therefore, the campaign cannot be carried out without the LG’s approval,” the official said.

Rai said the campaign, in previous years, played an important role in reducing vehicular emissions in Delhi, but the LG’s “inordinate delay and refusal” to clear the file has led to the state government postponing it this year.

“It is beyond our comprehension that the LG has time to write daily letters to the chief minister, but none for this important work. He is not new to Delhi and must know through TV channels and news that pollution is increasing, but he has not got the time to sign the file yet,” the minister said.

At his press conference, Rai said, “The Petroleum Conservation Research Association has presented data that shows switching off engines at red lights saves around ₹250 crore in fuel costs annually and reduces pollution by 13-20%. We can all try to use public transport like bus, metro or carpool with others, and avoid using our vehicles at least once a week. Experts have noted that doing this more than once a week or at least once, will help us bring down pollution levels and help save us fuel too.”

Kejriwal, meanwhile, tweeted that “dirty politics” was being played around the Delhi government’s efforts to tackle air pollution. “It’s really very sad that efforts of the Delhi government to curb pollution, which have played a critical role in reducing pollution all these years, are being stopped now due to dirty politics. Let us not play with the health of the people,” the CM wrote on Thursday.