Delhi CM Atishi Announces Deployment Of 10,000 Civil Defence Volunteers For Air Pollution Control, Awaits LG Approval

Delhi News: On Sunday, Delhi Chief Minister Atishi announced that the deployment of 10,000 civil defence volunteers (CDVs), who were removed from their roles as bus marshals last year, will begin within the next 2 to 4 days. These volunteers will assist various agencies in their efforts to combat air pollution in the capital.

At a press conference, Atishi stated that a detailed proposal for the CDVs’ permanent engagement will be submitted for the approval of Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena within the week. This announcement follows a recent letter from the LG, who expressed concern that he had not yet received a proposal to reappoint the volunteers, despite his directive to do so.

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In his letter, Saxena remarked that while Atishi and her party might seek to gain political credit for the reinstatement of the CDVs, any further delay in addressing the needs of these economically vulnerable individuals was unacceptable.

The CDVs had been working as marshals on public buses in Delhi but were removed from their positions in November last year due to objections from the revenue and finance departments. Atishi revealed that in a meeting held last week, the volunteers were already assigned to implement various anti-pollution initiatives being carried out by different agencies.

"Their deployment will begin in the next few days," she confirmed.

During the press conference, Atishi also accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of engaging in "dirty politics" regarding the situation of the CDVs. She claimed that the BJP might attempt to obstruct the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government’s proposal for the permanent reinstatement of the volunteers.

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Her comments came in response to warnings from BJP’s Delhi unit president, Virendra Sachdeva, who threatened to "gherao" the Chief Minister if a proposal for the bus marshals’ re-appointment was not submitted to the LG by Sunday evening.

Atishi challenged the BJP leaders to cease their politicisation of the issue, stating that the problems faced by the CDVs stemmed from the BJP’s actions, which led to their salaries being halted last April and their eventual removal in October 2023. She stated that the AAP had consistently supported the CDVs during their hardships, particularly when their salaries were stopped and they were dismissed from their positions.