AAP Govt. in doldrums on how to fix the problem.
The Aam Admi Party government of New Delhi demanded a fresh study to find the source of air pollution in Delhi as the national capital is reeling under heavy smog.
Delhi Environment Minister Imran Hussain, in a letter written to his Union counterpart Anil Dave demanded a fresh study by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to know the sources of emission.
“…satellite imagery from NASA shows large scale crop burning and pollution from the industries of nearby states like Punjab and Haryana, which have tremendous amounts of pollution. In this scenario, it is imperative that the source of emissions and their respective pollutant load contribution is investigated for the entire NCR,†Hussain wrote.
According to a report by CNN, the US environmental protection agency reported that the city’s Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 999 on Monday. According to the standard chart of air pollution, the hazardous level is at 500.
The state government had issued an order to close down more than 5000 schools in the city over the weekend and to stop all construction activities for three days. The government is also mulling restricting the number of vehicles on the road if the air quality does not improve in coming days.
As the situation worsened over the week, people took to streets to protest against the inaction of the government. People staged a protest outside the parliament on Sunday and social media platforms were flooded with messages showing the anger of the people. Pollution-mask is the most demanded product in the city now.
Emission from about nine million vehicles in the city is the main reason for the city’s higher level of pollution. Along with this, the chemical residue blowing in from neighboring states where farmers set fire to straw in huge quantities, has led to the highest level of pollution. As there were no winds blowing over the city for the past few days, the chemicals concentrated in the city are not getting dispersed.
A report titled ‘Comprehensive Study on Air Pollution and Green House Gases (GHGs) in Delhi’ by a team led by IIT-Kanpur Professor Mukesh Sharma had found that the biomass burning contributed 17 per cent (for PM 10) and 26 per cent (for PM 2.5) to the pollution. PM 2.5 and PM 10 are ultrafine respirable pollutants that are harmful to the respiratory system and can lead to cardiac issues in human beings.
Apart from New Delhi, adjacent state Uttar Pradesh, on Monday, hinted that they expect the acrid smog to blanket the state within days. The smog covering Delhi may move to UP and cover the entire state in a few days, said Lucknow city director J.P. Gupta.
Associated Chambers of Commerce of India warned that the pollution in cities will affect the economy. “Environment and air pollution-related issues might hurt Brand India and hit sectors like tourism and outdoor recreation, as people tend to stay away from polluted areas,” D.S. Rawat, secretary general of the Associated Chambers of Commerce of India was quoted as saying by Associated Press.
On Tuesday, Supreme Court of India will hear a plea seeking better action from the authorities against air pollution.