In its inaugural meeting on Thursday, the newly formed Delhi Cabinet under the leadership of Rekha Gupta has taken two decisions. Firstly, the Cabinet has approved the rollout of the Ayushman Bharat health insurance scheme in the national capital with a ₹5 lakh top-up from the Delhi government and ₹5 lakh from the Central government. Second.  “Second, 14 CAG reports which were pending and not tabled by the earlier government will be tabled in the first Assembly session, Gupta said.

 

Speaking at her first press conference as Delhi’s Chief Minister, Rekha Gupta stated that the previous AAP government had blocked the scheme's implementation, depriving residents of its benefits. She further said, “It’ll be implemented as early as possible”.  The Ayushman Bharat scheme has been implemented in all states except Delhi and West Bengal.

The outgoing AAP government ruled over Delhi for 10 years and did not implement the scheme by stating that free treatment is already provided to the Delhi people under its Delhi Arogya Kosh. Meanwhile, the BJP government highlighted that under Ayushman Bharat Yojana, those aged 70 or more will be entitled to a cover of Rs 5 lakh annually, irrespective of their income to be shared within the family.

 

Additionally, the CAG reports have not yet been officially tabled as the reports have uncovered details of major financial mismanagement in the planning, tendering and execution of renovation works at 6 Flag Staff Road, Delhi CM’s official residence. It was initially sanctioned at ₹ 7.61 crore in 2020, but by April 2022, the project’s cost escalated dramatically to ₹33.66 crore, which is 342 per cent, 342 per cent more than the original estimate.

 

The Cabinet also discussed the financial assistance plan for women, another BJP promise made during the election campaign. However, more discussions are needed regarding the beneficiaries before its implementation, where women will receive ₹2,500 per month in their bank account.

 

“I have taken the charge of the office after the oath-taking. The mission of ‘Viksit Delhi’, to complete it, we will keep working towards it. We won’t wait even a single day. And we will complete every commitment we had made,” Ms. Gupta said earlier in the day.