Union minister Puri slams AAP over Delhi air pollution, Punjab stubble burning

As air quality worsens, primary schools have been shut till November 8 in Delhi while government employees are ordered to ‘work-from-home’ in 50 per cent capacity till the situation improves.

Commenting on severe levels of air pollution in Delhi-NCR, Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri said Friday that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) - ruling in both Delhi and Punjab - should own responsibility for the issue hours after Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal urged that there should be no blame game on the matter. “Pollution is an issue everywhere, there are certain responsibilities that an elected government has to exercise. They are also there in Punjab, look at the incidents of stubble burning that had gone up in Punjab,” Puri was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

As the air quality index deteriorated to a ‘severe’ category recorded as high as 450, officials advised people against stepping out unless absolutely necessary. (Sunil Ghosh / Hindustan Times)

As air quality worsens in the capital, the Arvind Kejriwal government ramped up some measures on Friday to take control of the situation amid intensified criticism. Primary schools have been shut till November 8 in Delhi while government employees are ordered to ‘work-from-home’ in 50 per cent capacity till the situation improves.

In a briefing, Delhi Environment minister Gopal Rai also said that other than essential services, entry of trucks were being banned in the state and measures to control vehicular pollution such as the ‘odd-even’ rule would be considered. He said that a team of senior officials to monitor anti-polluting activities in the state will gear up to implement necessary measures.

As the air quality index deteriorated to a ‘severe’ category recorded as high as 450, officials advised people against stepping out unless absolutely necessary. Increased instances of stubble burning in neighbouring states have set the political temperature in the town on fire. As over 3,500 cases were reported in the last week in Punjab alone, the Bharatiya Janata Party attacked AAP for turning Delhi into a ‘gas chamber’ while Delhi CM responded Friday that “this was not time for blame game, it won't help finding solutions.”

(With inputs from ANI)