AAP minister accuses Delhi LG of making excuses for not giving timely approval for 'Red Light On, Gaadi Off' campaign

Delhi LG is either not aware of pollution levels or making excuses for not giving a timely nod to 'Red Light On, Gaadi Off' drive, said Gopal Rai.

New Delhi:Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Friday accused the lieutenant governor of making excuses for not giving timely approval for the 'Red Light On, Gaadi Off' campaign and questioned his seriousness about the level of pollution in the national capital. Setting the stage for a fresh confrontation with Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena, the AAP government on Thursday had said it was postponing the launch of the campaign as the LG's office was yet to approve it.

However, sources in the LG office alleged that Rai did not speak the truth about the date of the roll-out of the campaign and claimed that the AAP dispensation did so to coerce the LG into taking a decision. "LG is either not aware of seriousness of pollution or making excuses for not giving timely nod to 'Red Light On, Gaadi Off' drive. I appeal to him to give the approval as soon as possible," Rai said at a press conference on Friday.

Talking about the difference in dates of the permission sought from the LG and the launch of campaign, Rai said earlier the plan was to launch the drive from October 31. "However, later when the forecasts predicted pollution to rise after Diwali, it was decided to launch it from October 28," he added.

The month-long 'Red Light On, Gaadi Off' campaign aims to encourage drivers to turn off the ignition of their vehicles while waiting for the traffic signal to turn green. (PTI)