Rekha Gupta’s Entire Cabinet Hits the Streets in Rare Citywide Pollution and Sanitation Sweep

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta led a high-visibility citywide campaign on Wednesday, personally inspecting pollution hotspots and sanitation black spots across west and northwest Delhi as part of the newly launched “Meri Dilli – Meri Zimmedari” (My Delhi, My Responsibility) drive. Accompanied by civic officials, Gupta visited stretches along Road No. 41 near the Najafgarh drain, Meera Bagh Seva Basti, Sonia Camp, and Paschim Puri Crossing, directing municipal teams to accelerate road repairs, clear encroachments, and enforce stricter waste-collection schedules. “Delhi is our shared legacy. Every small effort strengthens the future of this city,” she told reporters, emphasising that the campaign is designed as a sustained oversight mechanism rather than a temporary measure ahead of winter pollution peaks.

For the second consecutive week, the entire Delhi cabinet were deployed across their respective constituencies in a coordinated blitz of inspections, awareness rallies, and on-the-spot corrections. Ministers fanned out to 62 identified pollution hotspots and chronic garbage vulnerable points, holding street-corner meetings with resident welfare associations and issuing time-bound directives to local sanitation staff. The exercise follows a sharp spike in Delhi’s Air Quality Index above 380 in early November, with construction dust, vehicular emissions, and open waste burning cited as primary culprits by the Commission for Air Quality Management.

Key ministerial interventions included Water Minister Pravesh Sahib Singh Verma touring Hauz Khas and Malviya Nagar, where he ordered immediate pothole repairs and pruning of trees obstructing drainage; Education Minister Ashish Sood addressing overflowing garbage dumps in Janakpuri’s Mahavir Enclave and Pankha Road, mandating relocation of excess waste to Rajapuri and expansion of the existing collection site; and Industry Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa participating in a cleanliness drive in Palam while announcing intensified mechanical road sweeping across west Delhi wards. Development Minister Kapil Mishra monitored anti-encroachment works along the Yamuna floodplain in Timarpur, while Social Welfare Minister Ravindra Indraj Singh led a rally in Samaypur Badli promoting household-level waste segregation and a ban on single-use plastics.

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In a related health-sector announcement, Health Minister Dr Pankaj Kumar Singh unveiled a colour-coded bedsheet protocol under the central Kayakalp hygiene initiative, assigning a different coloured linen to each day of the week across all Delhi government hospitals to reduce cross-contamination risks and improve patient confidence. Officials said the system, already piloted in five facilities, will be rolled out citywide by December 2025.

The “Meri Dilli – Meri Zimmedari” campaign marks a shift toward ministerial accountability for civic deliverables, with CM Gupta stating that weekly inspections will continue until measurable improvements are recorded in the Graded Response Action Plan parameters and the Swachh Survekshan rankings. Resident reactions on the ground were largely positive, though several RWAs urged the government to sustain momentum beyond the winter pollution season, warning that past drives have fizzled out after initial publicity. With Delhi staring at another severe smog episode, the high-level political push underscores the urgency of on-ground execution in India’s most polluted capital.

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