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'My livelihood comes from cars. Yet…' Cars24 CEO wants cars to be restricted amid Delhi AQI crisis
Cars24 CEO Vikram Chopra made an impassioned plea, urging the governement to restrict cars to improve the air quality in Delhi.
Mumbai AQI deteriorates
The air quality worsened across several parts of Mumbai on Tuesday, triggering speculation that the volcanic eruption in Ethiopia and the resulting ash clouds may have contributed to Mumbai’s haze.Vikram Chopra, founder and CEO of Cars24, has urged the government to restrict cars on roads as Delhi faces dangerous levels of air quality this winter.
"My livelihood comes from people buying and driving cars. Mobility is the backbone of my business. Yet here I am, publicly asking the government to restrict cars, restrict diesel, restrict anything that pumps poison into the sky," the Delhi-based entrepreneur wrote in a column in The Indian Express.
Delhi's air quality remained in the "very poor" category for the 12th straight day, recording an AQI of 352 of Tuesday. Like in the past years, the toxic air in Delhi this season has led to increased respiratory issues among residents, particularly children and the elderly. The city was covered in dense smog on Wednesday morning too, with air quality remaining "very poor".
"I am not writing this as a CEO. I am writing this as a father and a son. I have a five-year-old who should be playing outdoors but instead asks why the sky looks dirty again. I have 80-year-old parents who hesitate to step outside because the air stings their throats," the Cars24 CEO wrote.
Making an impassioned plea for cleaner air and urging the government to treat it like a health emergency, Vikram Chopra built a case for tried-and-tested measures such as the odd-even policy to be brought back. He also sought stricter regulations for any industry that is a chronic offender.
"My son and my parents do not get replacement lungs when Delhi fails to act. Neither do yours," Chopra wrote.
Delhi's AQI remains "very poor" despite GRAP-III
Earlier this month, the Commission for Air Quality Management said stage three of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) was enforced in Delhi, "keeping in view the prevailing trend of air quality, and in an effort to prevent further deterioration".
Under GRAP-III, non-essential construction is banned and curbs on industrial activity using polluting fuels are enforced.
Mumbai AQI deteriorates
The air quality worsened across several parts of Mumbai on Tuesday, triggering speculation that the volcanic eruption in Ethiopia and the resulting ash clouds may have contributed to Mumbai’s haze.
(Also Read: Rohit Sharma’s wife Ritika Sajdeh reacts to Mumbai’s hazardous air as AQI rises)
