By Rupin Chopra and Apalka Bareja
The Government of NCT of Delhi issued notification under Department of Environment and Forests on November 17, 2021 regarding intensive actions to be taken for effective control of air pollution in wake of the prevailing air quality scenario in Delhi[1].
As per the notification the following directions are issued –
Industrial Pollution
In order to tackle Industrial Pollution the following measures are to be taken-
- All Industries having gas connectivity shall be run only on gas as a fuel.
- No permit is to be given to any industry to use unapproved fuels.
- All industries having gas connectivity which are not using it as a fuel and industries still using unapproved fuels shall be closed with immediate effect.
- Concerned department shall set up effective mechanism to ensure enforcement of air pollution emission control norms by Industrial Units and for suitable penal action and / or closure
Vehicular Pollution/ Transport
In order to curb vehicular pollution the following actions are to be taken-
- Entry of trucks in Delhi except the ones carrying essential commodities was stopped till November 21, 2021. However, as per the notification issued on November 21, 2021 the date has been extended till November 26, 2021[2].
- Petrol and diesel vehicles of more than 15 and 10 years old cannot ply on roads.
- Vehicles which are visibly polluting and without PUC cannot ply on roads. PUC check to be carries out at the petrol pumps to avoid congestion on roads.
- Traffic task force to be deployed to closely monitor traffic avoid congestion in areas like intersections, unauthorized parking lots, busy market areas etc.
- Expeditiously procure and put on road adequate number of CNG buses at the earliest.
Dust Control Measures
Following measures are taken to control dust.-
- Construction and demolition activities in NCR was stopped till 21st November, 2021 except for the following categories of projects:
- Railway services / Railway stations
- Metro Rail corporation services, including stations
- Airports and Inter State Bus Terminals (ISBTs)
- National security/ defense related activities / projects of National importance
- Deploying Anti-smog guns, water sprinklers, dust suppressants in all vulnerable hotspots, at least three times a day
- Augmenting availability of road sweeping machines and water sprinklers through emergent procurement measures.
- Setting up effective enforcement mechanism to monitor compliance of air pollution Emission control norms by the C&D projects and penal action and/or closure.
- Imposing heavy penalty on persons/organizations responsible for stacking construction materials or C&D waste on roads and right of ways in NCR.
Diesel Generator (DG) Sets
Enforce a strict ban on use of DG sets, except for emergency services as stipulated from time to time. Electricity supply agencies have been directed to provide uninterrupted power supply for facilitating the effectiveness of this measure.
School/Colleges
All Schools, Colleges, Educational/Coaching Institutes, Skill Development & Training Institutes, Other Training Institutes, Libraries (except where exams are being conducted) are closed till further orders.
Further, in another notification issued on November 17, 2021 offices of Delhi government were closed with immediate effect till 21.11.2021 except those involved in essential and emergency services[3]. However all the officials were allowed to work from home. This date was further extended to November 26, 2021 by a notification issued on November 21, 2021[4].
[1] http://environment.delhigovt.nic.in/wps/wcm/connect/13c81a8044de3f37bf96bf28c2355f02/Intensive+actions+and+steps+for+effective+control+of+air+pollution.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&lmod=-331427138
[2] http://environment.delhigovt.nic.in/wps/wcm/connect/d162250044f3d55892bbdebef3ad5bf9/Direction+dated+21.11.2021+issued+under+Enviornment+%28protection.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&lmod=-331427138
[3] http://environment.delhigovt.nic.in/wps/wcm/connect/08e2320044e7d9018498dcbef3ad5bf9/Directions+dated+17.11.2021.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&lmod=-331427138
[4] http://environment.delhigovt.nic.in/wps/wcm/connect/d162250044f3d55892bbdebef3ad5bf9/Direction+dated+21.11.2021+issued+under+Enviornment+%28protection.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&lmod=-331427138
Amisha Bhasin, Intern at S.S. Rana & Co. has assisted in the research of this article.