A high-level meeting to discuss the severe air pollution in Delhi was cancelled when most of the officials invited didn’t attend. Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said he would “enquire” into the matter.
The meeting was convened by Parliament’s Standing Committee on Urban Development. News18 reports that 21 Lok Sabha members and eight Rajya Sabha members were invited but only four turned up. Two MPs from Delhi are members of the committee: Sanjay Singh from the AAP and Gautam Gambhir from the BJP. Singh attended while Gambhir, who is currently in Indore, did not.
Top officials who missed the meeting included the environment secretary, a representative of the Delhi Development Authority and the commissioners of the three Municipal Corporations of Delhi, NDTV reports.
According to The Hindu, the meeting “ended abruptly after members and chairman of the committee expressed displeasure over the absence of senior officers”.
India Today reports that the meeting intended to discuss whether the government has a “quantitative and qualitative utilisation report” on the Rs 1,500 crore and 14,000 machines given by the Centre to states to combat air pollution. Members were also going to discuss the government’s plans, if any, for car pool policies or regulations.
Meanwhile, Gambhir was slammed on Twitter for his absence.