HC raps Centre on funds: Is Delhi not your responsibility?

The court was hearing two PILs filed by advocates Arpit Bhargava and Gauri Grover seeking directions to authorities to take steps to prevent the spread of vector-borne diseases in the capital.

The bench also asked the Centre to look into the issue raised by the Delhi government that civic bodies of each state get funds amounting to Rs 488 for each person in their jurisdiction every year, while the capital has been getting a total of Rs 325 crore since 1991.

“We need help. Delhi needs help. Is the capital not your (Centre’s) responsibility? If other citizens of other states are entitled to more, why are people of Delhi not entitled to the amount of Rs 488 per head?” the court asked the Centre’s counsel.

The court’s query was posed after Delhi government counsel Sanjoy Ghose and Satyakam said that the government has not received a penny from the Centre since 1991.

The court also said it does not want to keep watching videos, filed by a court-appointed local commissioner, on the lack of garbage disposal and waste management in Delhi. It directed the Centre to place on record any proposal it may have to clean up the city.

Stating that Singapore was clean as there is stringent punishment for littering, the court asked civic bodies to pick one colony as a pilot project and ensure cleanliness by carrying out periodic inspections and levying challans.