E-Paper
CAQM constitutes 5-member task force to monitor compliance amid ‘very poor’ air quality in Delhi-NCR
Commission for Air Quality Management said it has already constituted 17 flying squads to take punitive measures against violators and will increase the number to 40 in the next 24 hours.
Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) in Delhi-NCR has constituted an enforcement task force to monitor compliance with the direction issued in the wake of worsening air quality in the region, the Supreme Court was told. In an affidavit, the commission informed the apex court that the 5-member task force has been constituted by exercising its statutory power.
The commission said it has already constituted 17 flying squads to take punitive measures against violators and will increase the number to 40 in the next 24 hours.
The affidavit was filed after the top court pulled up both the Centre and the Delhi government over the air quality in the national capital region. The court gave the Centre and the CAQM a 24-hour deadline to come up with an urgent mechanism to control air pollution in Delhi-NCR, failing which, the court said, it may set up a task force itself.
“We expect a serious, serious action or we will pass orders. We give you 24 hours to come out with a plan of action...If you cannot, we will have to pass some directions tomorrow,” the bench told solicitor general Tushar Mehta.
‘Elders have work from home and children have to go to school’: CJI pulls up Delhi govt
Last month, CAQM announced a slew of measures to control the air pollution in Delhi-NCR, including a ban on construction and demolition activities. But the air quality in the national capital has remained in the 'very poor' category for a while now. On Friday, the Air Quality Index (AQI) of Delhi stood at 385, according to the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR).
CAQM was formed earlier this year for better coordination, research, identification, and resolution of problems related to air quality in the Delhi-NCR and adjoining areas where any source of pollution may cause an adverse impact on air quality in the national capital region. The commission coordinates actions taken by concerned governments and plans and executes plans to prevent and control air pollution in the NCR.
