As a state dependent on neighbouring states for water and power, our first tasks were clearly specified. Power distribution was privatised and Sonia Vihar water treatment plant commissioned. To a large extent these two issues are behind us now. By 2010, Delhi will have become self-sufficient in the power sector.

Transport sector required a complete overhauling. The Metro needed to step out of the board-rooms onto the tracks. Growing traffic also required flyovers and subways. Clean air appeared a distant dream in the first term. Phasing out diesel and replacing it with CNG in a time-bound manner taught me that people are willing to go through the journey to reach the destination. Today, Delhi boasts of the largest fleet of eco-friendly public transport in the world. I am still concerned with the kind of diesel the city uses for its commercial and private transportation.

Whether it was the teething trouble of power privatisation or the transformation of public transport, I must say the people of the city did understand and did not betray any sense of impatience.

Cultural and economic constraints have led to a warped approach towards the girl child. Delhi's sex ratio and the dropout rate of the girl child have been a source of tremendous concern. Education of the girl child, and also to ensure a dignified status for her in the family, kept my mind abuzz with the kind of incentives that can help a family overcome at least the economic concerns. The Ladli Scheme is one such attempt, wherein education is clubbed with an economic advantage. Every girl born in a family which earns less than Rs 1 lakh a year and gets registered and goes to school, receives a lakh on completion of class 12th for further education or her marriage.

... contd.