Will blame Modi if flagship projects fail, says Sisodia

NEW DELHI: Deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia on Tuesday said prime minister Narendra Modi would be to blame if the flagship projects of the Delhi government in

NEW DELHI: Deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia on Tuesday said prime minister Narendra Modi would be to blame if the flagship projects of the Delhi government in the health and education sectors were derailed.

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On lieutenant-governor Najeeb Jung transferring several Delhi government officials, especially those of PWD and health secretaries, Sisodia said the Centre was creating hurdles for the AAP government.

“We have got to know that Modiji asked the L-G to transfer these officers. Modi can go to any extent. Modiji will be responsible if the education and health departments struggle ,” he said.

The Delhi government has opened about 105 mohalla clinics and plans to increase these to 1,000. It aims to construct 4,200 classrooms and open 100 new schools in the current financial year.

The government claims to have built 8,000 classrooms in the last financial year.

After the high court ruled on August 4 that the L-G was the administrative head of the city, deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia requested Jung not to transfer PWD secretary Sarvagya Srivastava and health secretary Tarun Seem.

He said“these two officers were handling two flagship projects of the AAP government”, setting up mohalla clinics and building schools .“Was the high court order passed to take Delhi forward or backward?” asked Sisodia at a press conference in the Delhi secretariat.

The deputy CM argued that for the first time, the state government had brought in non-IAS officers, who were specialists, in the health and PWD.

“We posted an honest engineer in the PWD department and a person with medical background in the health department. And they have been transferred at a time when they were doing a good job,” Sisodia said.

The L-G office, however, clarified the postings of Sarvagaya Srivastava, engineer-in-chief, PWD and Tarun Seem, mission director, Delhi State Health Mission, as secretary (PWD) and secretary (health) were illegal and against Centre’s cadre rules.

Even the posting of Seem, an IRS officer, in GNCTD is illegal since it did not have the approval of the Lt. Governor.

Officials said Srivastava and Seem were holding posts as secretary (PWD) and secretary (health) in the GNCTD as additional charge in violation of the existing rules.