CM & British envoy moot signing knowledge-sharing pact on education, health

New Delhi: British High Commissioner Alex Ellis and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday discussed the possibility of signing a knowledge-sharing agreement on education and health, an official statement said.

Ellis, accompanied by Barbara Wickham, director of British Council India, also held an extensive discussion with Kejriwal on road infrastructure and its sustainability, it said.

Collaboration on green buildings, solar policy, waste management, road designing and electric buses were among the other topics the Delhi chief minister discussed with Ellis, according to the statement.

Underlining that the Delhi government has identified education, healthcare, water supply and roadworks as its priority sectors, Kejriwal told the British delegation that his government had been spending 25 per cent of its annual budget on education and that Rs 85,000 crore had already been invested in this sector in the last seven years.

"We were able to allocate funds because of our commitment to honesty. This helped further accelerate Delhi's progress," he said.

The chief minister said that the government is radically working upon enhancing Delhi's water supply mechanism, reducing air pollution, and making transport more accessible and sustainable. "We have given a clear message that we are here to serve the people, and slowly and gradually, we are gaining their trust. We've done a fantastic job in education and healthcare, and it's being talked about across the country and worldwide," he added.

Kejriwal said when the Aam Aadmi Party formed the government, schools lacked desks, toilets, drinking water and security. However, they now have state-of-the-art buildings with top-notch swimming pools and facilities at par with private schools.

Drawing a parallel with the London healthcare model, Kejriwal said mohalla clinics have been set up in every locality where anybody can walk in at any point of the day.

Kejriwal said that his government is currently working to connect all of the Delhi government's hospitals through the Health Information Management System.

"The citizens of Delhi will be given e-health cards. The doctor will have access to patients' complete medical history through these cards," he said.