Delhi air pollution 'severe', Gopal Rai calls meeting with all ministers today

Atishi, Saurabh Bhardwaj, Kailash Gahlot, Rajkumar Anand and Imran Hussain will be present in the meeting, the office of environment minister said.

As Delhi continues to suffer from the 'severe' air quality, environment minister Gopal Rai has called a meeting with all ministers to discuss the air pollution problem on Thursday. The meeting will take place at the Delhi Secretariat at 12:30 pm, officials said.

A one-month-old baby breathes with the help of a nebuliser at the emergency ward of the government-run Chacha Nehru Bal Chikitsalaya children hospital in New Delhi. (AFP)

Finance and revenue minister Atishi, health minister Saurabh Bhardwaj, transport minister Kailash Gahlot, social welfare minister Rajkumar Anand and food and supply minister Imran Hussain will be present in the meeting, the office of the environment minister said.

The air quality in Delhi was recorded in the 'severe' category on Thursday morning, with a marginal improvement expected just ahead of Diwali as meteorological conditions are likely to become slightly favourable.

Delhi's Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 420 at 8am on Thursday, compared to 426 at 4pm on Wednesday. The AQI map prepared by the Central Pollution Control Board showed clusters of red dots (indicating hazardous air quality) spread across the Indo-Gangetic plains.

Neighbouring Ghaziabad (369), Gurugram (396), Noida (394), Greater Noida (450), and Faridabad (413) also reported very bad air quality.

According to officials at the India Meteorological Department, a change in wind direction from northwest to southeast due to a fresh western disturbance affecting northwest India will help reduce the contribution of smoke from stubble burning, but slow wind speed will counteract this.

However, once the western disturbance passes, the wind speed will increase from around 5-6 kmph, at present, to around 15 kmph on November 11, which will help disperse pollutants ahead of Diwali, the official said.

Delhi schools closed for winter break, app-based taxis banned

In view of the worsening air pollution, the Delhi government on Wednesday rescheduled the December winter break of all schools, which will now be from November 9 to November 18.

Gopal Rai said the entry of app-based taxis into Delhi has been banned according to orders of the Supreme Court.

He also said the odd-even car rationing scheme will be implemented in the national capital after the Supreme Court reviews its effectiveness and issues an order. The matter will be next heard on Friday.

On Tuesday, the apex court questioned the effectiveness of the Delhi government's car rationing scheme, aimed at curbing vehicular pollution, and referred to it as "all optics".

Anticipating further deterioration of air quality post-Diwali, Rai had on Monday announced that the flagship scheme, which permits cars to operate on alternate days based on the odd or even last digit of their registration numbers, would be enforced between November 13 and November 20.

(With inputs from agencies)