Arvind Kejriwal, the chief minister of Delhi, on Friday unveiled a 15-point winter action plan to reduce pollution in the nation's capital and made the decision to start an anti-dust campaign from October 6. To combat the problem, he said that the government would deploy 233 anti-smog weapons and 150 mobile anti-smog weapons. The CM claims that 611 teams have been established by the government to monitor open garbage burning.
"As the winter sets in, we often see a spike in the pollution levels. The Delhi government in consultation with several agencies have prepared the plan to curb air pollution," Kejriwal said.
He added that the city's 2 crore inhabitants and the government have worked very hard to reduce air pollution, which has significantly brought down the levels.
As per a report by the Centre's National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), the pollution in the city has reduced significant in 2021-22 as compared to four years ago," the Chief Minister said, adding that the PM10 level has come down by 18.6 per cent.
He also said that the 24-hour electricity supply in the capital has also contributed significantly to reduce pollution by bringing down the usage of generators.
Kejriwal further said that shutting down of two thermal power plants which were responsible for generating fly ash, Delhi has become a model state.
Talking about other steps that have helped reducing pollution in the city, he mentioned a rising green cover in the city, electric vehicles policy, and peripheral expressway among, others.
The Chief Minister however, said that air pollution due to stubble burning remains a top concern at this time of the year.
A bio-decomposer prepared by the PUSA Institute would be given to farmers for free, while an anti-dust campaign will start from October 6, Kejriwal noted, adding that active monitoring will be carried out by 586 teams.
He further said that for vehicular pollution, around 380 teams have been formed to check enforcement of the PUC policy and ban will continue to remain on firecrackers like every year.
The Chief Minister further said that along with IIT-Kanpur, data is being collected on the likely causes for pollution in Delhi, adding that a super site has been formed, 8,500 Paryavan Mitras have been set up, as well as an e-waste park to dispose electronic waste.
Kejriwal said that to increase green cover, the government had aimed to plant 42 lakh trees.
"A 24x7 green war room would be functional from October 3 where a nine-member expert team would be doing constant analysis to prepare a plan. We had made a green Delhi app about two years ago. So far, 53,000 complaints have been received. I would encourage you to continue sharing feedback on this," he added.
He also said that the Graded Response Action Plan would be followed to forecast for three days at a time and urged neighbouring states to make sure that most vehicles coming from outside run on CNG.
