33 teams to monitor industrial pollution in Delhi: Rai

The environment minister said the measures were part of the 14-point Summer Action Plan (SAP) on Delhi’s air pollution.

Delhi environment minister Gopal Rai on Friday said the government had deployed 33 teams to monitor industrial pollution, while a total of 259 teams were deployed to monitor dumping of industrial waste. Holding a review meeting on industrial pollution, Rai also directed the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) to prepare an industrial waste management plan, ensure regular lifting of waste and to also make sure all industries in Delhi were running on fuels approved by the government.

Delhi environment minister Gopal Rai. (HT Photo)

Rai said the measures were part of the 14-point Summer Action Plan (SAP) on air pollution, launched by chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on May 1.

“The SAP has highlighted our efforts to enhance air quality in Delhi by initiating the monitoring of industrial pollution and its waste management. Under the industrial pollution campaign, 141 patrolling teams consisting of 472 personnel will monitor industrial waste dumping during the day while 108 teams of 397 personnel will patrol at night. Along with this, 33 teams, comprising officials of DPCC and Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (DSIIDC), have been deployed for continuous inspection of industrial units. The teams will oversee all industrial units in Delhi and implement immediate measures to curb pollution,” Rai said after the review meeting, adding the teams have been asked to submit periodic reports to the environment department which will evaluate the findings.

“The 33 teams have also been instructed to take strict action against industrial units for any environmental violation,” he said. Rai added that a comprehensive industrial waste management plan will help in further managing this waste better.

The review meeting consisted of officers from DPCC, environment department, DSIIDC, revenue department, Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and Delhi Development Authority (DDA), among others. Officials told the minister that so far, 1,721 industrial units in Delhi had shifted to piped natural gas (PNG), with Rai asking the teams to ensure no functioning unit was running on fuels not on the government-approved list.