Ministers to hit the ground to ensure enforcement

New Delhi: In response to the persistent air quality crisis, the Delhi government has initiated decisive measures to enforce Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) rules across the city.

Environment minister Gopal Rai announced the government’s strategy after a joint meeting with all ministers, assigning specific responsibilities for different districts to ensure comprehensive implementation.

Rai revealed that all ministers, including Transport minister Kailash Gahlot, Revenue minister Atishi, Health minister Saurabh Bharadwaj, Food and Civil Supplies minister Imran Hussain, and Social Welfare minister Raj Kumar Anand, will actively collaborate with nodal officers in their respective districts. Their primary focus will be on monitoring officers on the ground and issuing necessary directives to address pollution sources.

Acknowledging the current stability in Delhi’s pollution levels over the past few days, Rai attributed the situation to slow air movement and consistently low temperatures. “The newly implemented GRAP-4 encompasses strict measures, including the ban on petrol vehicles with Bharat Stage-3 engines and diesel vehicles with BS-4 engines. Entry restrictions for most trucks and a complete halt on construction activities within Delhi have also been imposed,” Rai asserted.

In response to reported non-compliance with rules, Rai emphasised, “News had been doing rounds for several days that strict adherence to rules was not being observed in Delhi, and construction activities and other operations were continuing unabated.” In a bid to address this issue, all ministers will be actively involved on the ground to ensure compliance and eliminate negligence.

Additionally, ministers will inspect construction sites to ensure adherence to directives such as covering materials and water sprinkling.

Rai highlighted the government’s commitment to addressing challenges despite constraints, stating, “Ever since the Central government has snatched away the powers of the Delhi government, the circumstances have been opposite.”

He further mentioned the deliberate hindrance of initiatives, including the stalling of the SMOG Tower and Real-time Source Apportionment Study. Rai asserted, “This means that it was closed intentionally, there was no logic to it.”

Furthermore, the government is set to present its case on artificial rain in the Supreme Court, expressing readiness to bear all expenses and requesting central government support for the initiative by November 20.

Adding to the developments, Rai reported a decrease in stubble burning cases compared to the previous year.