On November 3, Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena convened a meeting with Environment Minister Gopal Rai and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to address the city’s growing air pollution. In an attempt to reduce air pollution in the nation’s capital, Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena called a meeting with Environment Minister Gopal Rai and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday at 6 p.m.
In light of the city’s increasing air pollution, a number of temporary remedies were decided upon during the conference, including:
- Pollution reduction should be given top priority in all government departments and agencies’ operations, regardless of their specific mandates.
- The environment agency will release recommendations advising the elderly and young people to stay inside as much as possible and to exercise additional caution.
- To guarantee less traffic and, thus, lower emissions and dust pollution, people will be asked to stay indoors for as long as possible, avoid needless travel, and, if required, use public transportation.
- Strict local implementation of the Commission for Air Quality Management’s Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) to address air pollution is planned.
- When necessary, double shifts should be worked to make the best use possible of all mechanical road sweepers, water sprinklers, and anti-smog cannons (static, mobile, and those over high buildings).
- The health department is responsible for making sure all of its facilities are ready to serve any local resident in need. Through incentives, neighboring states—Punjab in particular—will be urged to refrain from burning crops.
Officials reported that out of a total of 2,684 Parali burning incidents on Wednesday, 1,921 (71.57%) occurred in Punjab. In addition to Punjab, there have been reports of 99 instances of Parali burning in Haryana, 95 in Uttar Pradesh, and 60 in Rajasthan.
Gopal Rai, the environment minister for Delhi, stated following the meeting that he has requested the Lieutenant Governor to ensure that senior officers “actively” participate in talks about air pollution.
Rai stated that officials had turned “inactive” following the introduction of the Delhi Services Bill by the central government. According to the AAP politician, this is the reason he requested that the Delhi L-G give all officials the order to “not boycott the Delhi government”.
Rai also requested an investigation into why the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) shut down the pollution tower in Connaught Place.
The National Capital Region is required to implement and execute emergency measures, such as a ban on commercial four-wheelers, trucks that emit pollutants, and all forms of construction, when the air quality in Delhi falls below the “severe plus” level on Friday morning.
The city’s air quality index (AQI) abruptly increased due to extremely unfavorable weather and a substantial rise in stubble burning occurrences in neighboring states, jumping from 351 at 10 am on Thursday to 471 at 9 am on Friday.
The city’s 24-hour average AQI was 392 on Thursday, 364 on Wednesday, 359 on Tuesday, 347 on Monday, 325 on Sunday, 304 on Saturday, and 261 on Friday. The readings were taken at 4 p.m. daily.
