Delhi Pollution Highlights: Capital chokes as 'very poor' air quality persists

The ruling AAP in Punjab Tuesday said the Bhagwant Mann government is constantly taking steps to check stubble-burning incidents in the state and as a result of this, the number of farm fires is on a decline.

Punjab Aam Aadmi Party chief spokesman Malvinder Singh Kang said so far, farmers have been provided with 1.40 lakh crop residue management machines to manage stubble.

He added that the state government also conducted massive awareness programmes in villages in order to prevent crop residue burning incidents.

"Since its formation, the Mann government has constantly been taking steps to curb stubble burning in Punjab and these efforts are even showing results," Kang said.

PTI

Farmers in Punjab Tuesday said they were unnecessarily being targeted and defamed for air pollution in Delhi, asserting that industries, vehicles and the construction sector are the major sources of pollution in the national capital and not stubble burning.

Paddy straw burning in Punjab and Haryana is considered a contributing factor to the spike in pollution levels in Delhi in October and November every year.

PTI

Amid high pollution levels in the national capital, Delhi Traffic Police has issued over 4,700 challans to vehicle owners driving without a pollution under control (PUC) certificate in the last four days, officials said on Tuesday.

Stage IV of the Centre's pollution control plan called the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) came into force in Delhi on Sunday as the city's air quality plummeted to the 'severe plus' category. Under the final Stage IV of the plan, all kinds of construction work and the entry of polluting trucks into the city have been banned.

GRAP categorises actions into four stages: Stage I - 'Poor' (AQI 201-300); Stage II - 'Very Poor' (AQI 301-400); Stage III - 'Severe' (AQI 401-450); and Stage IV - 'Severe Plus' (AQI>450).

PTI

From installing air purifiers to keeping oxygen cylinders on standby, old age homes in Delhi are sparing no effort to safeguard the well-being of their occupants amid the worsening air quality in the national capital.

The city's retirement homes have also advised its residents, especially those with breathing problems, to avoid going out and instead engage in physical activities and yoga indoors.

"We have pro-actively placed emergency oxygen cylinders around the property to address any respiratory concerns due to the rising air pollution," Rajeshwari Mishra, secretary of Shiv Ashray Old Age Home in north Delhi's Rohini said.

PTI

Delhi has been experiencing alarming levels of air pollution over the past six days and policy measures to mitigate the crisis have not yielded much in containing the situation, especially due to stubble burning in the nearby states of Punjab and Haryana.

With restrictions under stage 4 of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) in place, and the odd-even curb on vehicular movement in the offing, a western disturbance (WD) seems to have also come to the city’s rescue, weather officials said.

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Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has recommended immediate suspension of the Delhi Pollution Control Committee chairman Ashwani Kumar to Delhi LG, ANI reports.

Speaking on the Supreme Court's order to the Punjab government to stop burning the stubble, state cabinet minister Bram Shanker Sharma said that the government is putting all efforts from their side to control one of the main cause of pollution in Northern India - stubble burning by farmers.

Amid rising concerns over deteriorating air quality in the Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR), the Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Punjab government to stop stubble burning and listed the matter for hearing on November 10.

Bram Shanker Sharma told ANI "Punjab government put in all efforts from their side. We held discussions with farmers and appealed to them not to burn stubble and to choose alternative crops. The government is committed to stop burning stubble so that the environment is not harmed. We respect the Supreme Court. CM Bhagwant Mann has also appealed to the farmers and I am hopeful that the situation will improve."

Delhi's Environment Minister, Gopal Rai, has stated that the government will initiate a thorough examination of the Supreme Court's recent directive before implementing the odd-even rule. This comes in response to the Supreme Court's criticism of the government's handling of the pollution crisis in the National Capital, as well as its inquiry into the effectiveness of the odd-even car rationing scheme. The top court, referring to the government's announcement of the return of the odd-even scheme from November 13 to November 20, remarked, "It's all optics."

During a meeting of the transport department on Tuesday, discussions were underway to finalize the specifics of the odd-even scheme. However, the government decided to shift its focus upon encountering certain remarks and directives from the Supreme Court. Consequently, instead of an immediate announcement of the odd-even rules, the government intends to carefully review and incorporate the Supreme Court's orders and observations into the scheme, as indicated by Gopal Rai.

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With the Supreme Court taking a stern view of the pollution situation in the national capital, former environment minister and senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Tuesday said both the Centre and the states have been complicit in their "inaction".

Ramesh also urged the Supreme Court, in the same spirit, to intervene to reverse what he said was the "weakening" of the National Green Tribunal by the Modi government.

Amid a spike in pollution levels in Delhi-NCR, the Supreme Court on Tuesday directed Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan to ensure crop residue burning was stopped "forthwith", saying it cannot let "people die" due to pollution.

PTI

On stubble burning in Punjab, Chairman Punjab Pollution Control Board Adarsh Pal Vig said to ANI, "The data that has come to us till November 6 shows that the total number of such cases is 19,463. Last year, approximately 30,000 cases came... According to these data, we have recorded a 35% reduction from last year... In the past few days, stubble-burning cases have increased. This is a matter of concern. Our team and officers are going on the ground to manage according to the action plan. In the coming days, our target is to achieve -50%... There is a process for reporting. After that, the team goes there, and they verify it... There is one environmental compensation directive from the NGT. For polluting the environment, the polluter has to pay a financial amount according to the pay principle. 1,646 cases have been verified..."

The BJP took a dig at AAP and said the Supreme Court’s directive on pollution is a slap on the face of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and demanded that he apologise for turning the national capital into a gas chamber.

Reacting to the court’s decision, BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said, "After the complete expose of the Aam Aadmi Party by the Supreme Court on Delhi’s Air Pollution and Punjab stubble issue, Arvind Kejriwal should apologise for making Delhi a gas chamber and stealing our right to breathe fresh air over the last 8 years".

All schools in Noida and Greater Noida will remain closed till November 10 owing to the deteriorating air quality in Uttar Pradesh's Gautambydha Nagar district.

On Air pollution in Delhi, Delhi Mayor Shelly Oberoi said ti ANI, "...Instead of the blame game, we all should be working together on the issue of pollution...In MCD, around 517 teams have been formed in which more than 1100 workers as well as officials have been deployed...At ground level intense water sprinkling is being done in the morning and evening shifts through water sprinklers, anti-smog guns, and jetting machines. 13 hotspots were also identified...The best part is in the last three days...AQI has improved and pollution level has decreased,"

Delhi’s choked air is resulting in “complete murder of our young people”, said the Supreme Court on Tuesday as it ordered immediate ban on stubble burning by neighbouring states of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan and directed Cabinet Secretary to meet all stakeholders on Wednesday to devise an immediate cure to the rising pollution levels in the city. The matter will be heard next on Friday.

A bench of justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Sudhanshu Dhulia said, “We want this stopped altogether whether you take forceful action or give incentives against burning of stubble but you have to stop it. We are at zero level patience in these issues. This has to be sorted tomorrow so that it does not happen next year.”

Delhi environment minister Gopal Rai on Tuesday said the Delhi government will wait for the Supreme Court's written orders -- which had held hearing on air pollution on the same day -- based on which a decision on the odd-even scheme and its implementation will be taken. The Supreme Court on Tuesday raised questions on implementing the odd-even scheme in Delhi asked whether it had ever succeeded before.

"Odd-even has been implemented in Delhi, but has it ever succeeded? This is all optics." a bench comprising of Justices SK Kaul and Sudhanshu Dhulia had said during a hearing on pollution in Delhi.

Farmers in Punjab on Tuesday claimed that they were unnecessarily being targeted and defamed for air pollution in Delhi, asserting that industries, vehicles and the construction sector are the major sources of pollution in the national capital and not stubble burning.

Pieter Elbers, Chief Executive Officer of IndiGo, on Monday said that the crew and staff about the deteriorating air quality in Delhi and the National Capital Region.

When asked about the measures IndiGo is taking to address air pollution, the CEO stated, "Of course, we interact with everyone on that and we make sure that we try to control the air quality inside. But what's happening outside is a consequence of a lot of different factors."

Mumbai's air quality was recorded as 'Moderate' on Tuesday morning with a thick haze of smoke and fog veiling skyscrapers, buildings and other residential areas in the city.

The Air Quality Index (AQI) for Mumbai was recorded at 159 at 1 pm which is considered 'Moderate'.

Thick clouds of smog shrouded parts of the national capital as the air quality across the metropolitan city continued to remain in 'severe' category on Tuesday, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

According to the data shared by the CPCB, the Air Quality Index (AQI) in Anand Vihar was recorded at 440, 388 at Narela, 434 at Punjabi Bagh, 431 at RK Puram, and 408 at Shadipur, all in the 'severe category zone'.

Likewise, the AQI at Jahangirpuri was recorded at 416, 404 at IGI Airport, 337 at Pusa Road, and 407 at Sonia Vihar.

Stop crop burning forthwith, the Supreme Court on Tuesday told states of Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.

The Court directed the local SHO to be responsible for implementing this order under the overall supervision of Chief Secretary.

The Court directed Cabinet Secretary to call for a meeting of all stakeholders tomorrow for an immediate solution to Delhi’s pollution.

The Court said, “We are at zero level patience on this issue now” and hoped to get some redemption from polluted air by Friday.

On Delhi pollution, BJP MP Parvesh Verma said to ANI, "In Punjab, cases of stubble burning have increased by 700 per cent as compared to last year... Arvind Kejriwal is going for election campaigning in other states... If he had done something for Delhi, we would not have seen this. I would suggest he leave political tourism and pay attention to Delhi...The Indian government is doing its work. The stubble burning cases have decreased in Haryana..."

Supreme Court summons Delhi Pollution Control Committee's chairman Ashwani Kumar for reportedly shutting down the two smog towers in Delhi; directs operationalising the towers immediately

Supreme Court also puts onus on the Centre, suggesting it should stop supporting MSP for paddy in Punjab and should rather find ways to make farmers shift to alternative crops.