E-Paper
'Sir please': Kiran Bedi's appeal to PM Modi as Delhi pollution worsens
Kiran Bedi referenced PM Modi's "effective" Zoom sessions with officials during her time as Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry.
Former top police officer Kiran Bedi on Friday issued an appeal to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging him to intervene as the air pollution in Delhi worsens. Her message to the prime minister came on a day when several areas in the national capital recorded an overall Air Quality Index (AQI) of 369, falling in the 'very poor' category.
Taking to X, Kiran Bedi urged the prime minister to address the issue during his 'Mann Ki Baat' address, and even referenced his "effective" Zoom sessions with officials during her time as Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry.
"Sir please forgive me for pleading again. But I have seen your very effective Zoom sessions during my time in Puducherry. How you got every body to deliver and perform time bound in several national challenges. How everyone was inspired to meet the deadlines and the goals," a part of Bedi's tweet read.
She urged PM Modi to hold virtual meetings with Chief Ministers and Chief Secretaries of Delhi’s neighbouring states every month to take stock of the progress in tackling pollution. "It will give us hope because we will know it’s under your oversight. People can heave a sense of relief," she wrote.
Bedi urged PM Modi to bring up the matter in his Mann Ki Baat address, to cater to all age groups and make them understand how they could contribute to pollution control. “Delhi was waiting for a ‘double engine’ in this respect too, to undo the damage done last 10 years,” she concluded.
With pollution concerns mounting in Delhi, Kiran Bedi has actively been using her X account to amplify messages on air quality concerns. She called for cooperative practices between states and officials, and said that pollution was not accidental, but an “outcome of decades without true coordination in governance”.
The AQI in Delhi has hovered between the 'very poor' and 'severe' categories for the past two weeks, despite anti-pollution measures put in place. The air quality is likely to remain 'very poor' over the coming week, according to the forecast by the Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi.
