On Day 1, AAP minister Birla arrives at office in auto

NEW DELHI: The youngest minister in the Aam Aadmi Party government, Rakhi Birla, surprised her office staff when she came to work in an auto rickshaw. While people in her office rushed to receive her, Birla entered the secretariat unassumingly with the trademark 'aam admi' cap on her head and held a series of reviews of women and child development department, social welfare and the department of languages.

Choosing to keep the work going post office hours, Birla sped off with her staff in her secretary's car for an impromptu inspection to the overcrowded Asha Kiran home for the mentally challenged in Rohini. There are 900 inmates in this complex, though it can accommodate just about 350. The administrator of the home, B S Banerjee, was informed just 30 minutes before the minister's arrival. The inmates welcomed Birla with a cultural programme, making an impression with a dance by children in wheelchairs.

The institution has been in the news for the wrong reasons, particularly during winter when deaths of inmates are reported. But this time around, the administrator promises a different experience. "The minister has asked us to focus on sanitation and ensure proper winter arrangements. The home is certainly overcrowded but we are doing are best to ensure that no one is neglected. All dormitories have heaters," Banerjee told TOI.

He pointed that a new home in Narela is in the works. It will be able to accommodate at least 1,000 inmates which will help solve the problem of overcrowding. For now, over 150 inmates have been shifted to two other buildings of the department to decongest the complex. More inmates are likely to be shifted from here.