Dixit scores on power, slips on VAT, industrial relocation

 According to a survey, as of June 30, 2003, there are 197 projects in Delhi worth Rs 35,439 crore in various stages of implementation.

 The implementation ration is 49.1 per cent against the national average of 37.6 per cent. The state government and its agencies account for 76 per cent of this investment.

 Today, as the state goes to the polls, the Shiela Dikshit administration can claim honours for having rectified quite a few of these problems.

 Even as the state administration did well on some fronts, it dragged its feet on two major issues. First, in the case of tax reform initiatives, Delhi was among the first states to dither on the proposed shift to the value added tax regime.

 And second, despite the Supreme Court order on industrial relocation, things have not moved. Till September, only around 110 unit owners had actually taken possession of alternate plots in Bawana, against an estimated 16,000 industrial units that were slated to shift to the site.

 On the other hand, it was the Supreme Court order that forced the public transport fleet to shift to Compressed Natural Gas, thus lowering the pollution in the Capital considerably.

 Despite the setbacks, the success areas of the Shiela Dikshit administration are beginning to show results.

 The private players in the power distribution business are doing a much better job, with the experience of two summers behind them now.

 The hole in the state exchequer on account of Delhi Vidyut Board