Delhi is in news once again for its alarming pollution levels. A blanket of haze continues to cover the city with pollution levels shooting higher and breaching the safe limit by over 17 times. Panic has set in with the Centre calling for a meeting of all neighbouring states in a bid to appeal to farmers to curb stubble burning, which is cited as the main reason for the increasing level of smog.
The reasons given for the rise in smog is use of firewood, coal, diesel, petrol and burning of agricultural waste. Till now, the pollution in Delhi was mainly attributed to the overload of vehicular traffic on roads, especially the diesel variants. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal likened Delhi to a gas chamber and attributed the situation to farm fires in neighouring Punjab and Haryana, while also appealing to people to minimize use of vehicles.
The Delhi government responded, but with short-term measures like banning demolitions and construction works, barring use of diesel generators, shutdown of a coal-based plant, besides vacuum cleaning of roads. These interim measures appear too little too late. Moreover, the measures are selective and area-specific and not throughout the city like on non-PWD roads “ some of which are controlled by the NHAI and others by MCDs, both under the BJP at the Centre and municipal level. Sprinkling of roads is another step that is announced and vacuum cleaning is supposed to start from November 10, measures that the Supreme Court had ordered much earlier. There was no visible action seen on the ground. The vacuum cleaners were supposed to have been acquired last year, but were missing in action. The Supreme Court had also instructed to ensure that dust from construction sites is curbed from spreading into surrounding areas. The administration failed here too.
The situation has slipped beyond control and the Delhi government will have to go in for some tough measures, besides a plan of action. The quick solutions adopted by Kejriwal, including the odd-even formula which may be re-introduced, will work in little measure, but again, it doesn’t seem to be a long-term answer. Pollution and winter smog is nothing new to the capital, but Kejriwal has not learnt his lessons well. The government has shown extreme lethargy in tackling such a serious issue. A plan of action should have been executed by now. Delhi is seriously choking and authorities and experts need to sit down and do some serious thinking on maintaining a fairly decent ambient air quality in Delhi.
