'Crop burning in other states the main problem'

NEW DELHI: The Environment department of Delhi government will focus on the issue of crop burning in other states and, with the help of Delhi Chief Minister and other state authorities will try to solve the problem, said Delhi Environment minister Imran Hussain on Wednesday.

"We have found that crop burning is the main problem. Our CM has already talked with the Haryana CM and we will work together to solve the issue," he said.

Hussain added that the government took all the decisions suggested by the Lieutenant Governor and the Supreme Court authorised body EPCA. "We have followed all the orders under our limitations," he said.

Talking to Millennium Post, Hussain said that the government has started 20 air monitoring stations on the emergency basis, as proper monitoring was needed.

"We are doing continuous monitoring and it will be continued," Hussain stated.

The department is also continuously in touch with the Central Pollution Control Board and the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC).

"We are always in touch with the agencies and whenever there is an urgent report, we inform CPCB directly," a senior official of the department said.

Sources added that a team of scientists is monitoring the air quality of Delhi and making a roadmap to avoid this condition in the future. On Tuesday, the Delhi government, in a letter to the chief of the DPCC, said ambient air quality has improved comparatively, but other things could deteriorate.

"However, various meteorological forecasts and reports indicate that this phase is temporary and ambient air quality may once again worsen in the coming weeks," Hussain wrote in the letter.

He also issued a slew of directions, including roadside spraying of water, mechanical sweeping and preventing burning of waste in the open, to combat the rising pollution levels.

The air quality index remained 320 on Wednesday, with agencies predicting that it might improve in the weekend.