May 19, 2025 01:19 pm (IST)
Follow us:
facebook-white sharing button
twitter-white sharing button
instagram-white sharing button
youtube-white sharing button
Centre picks Shashi Tharoor to head all-party delegation for 'exposing' Pak-backed terrorism globally | Rape convict, survivor express willingness to get married; exchange flowers in Supreme Court | 'Are nukes safe with irresponsible and rogue nation like Pakistan?': Rajnath Singh questions world | 'Go and apologise': Supreme Court slams Madhya Pradesh minister over remark against Colonel Sofiya Qureshi | 'Can timelines be imposed?': President Murmu's question to Supreme Court on Tamil Nadu verdict | 'Had Indira Gandhi been alive, I would've asked her why PoK was not taken back in Simla Agreement': Himanta Biswa Sarma | India's stand demanding vacation of Pak-occupied Kashmir unchanged: MEA | PM Modi visits Adampur Air Base days after Operation Sindoor | Jammu and Kashmir: Three Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists killed in encounter with security forces in Shopian | US: Two Indian students die in road mishap in Pennsylvania
Image Credit: File image of Delhi air pollution/UNI

After rap from SC, Delhi air pollution panel sets up 'flying squads' to prevent stubble burning

| @indiablooms | Oct 02, 2024, at 03:01 am

New Delhi/IBNS: Days after a rap from the Supreme Court, the Commission for Air Quality Management, a central government panel to monitor air pollution and quality in Delhi, has swung into action by setting up 'flying squads' to prevent Punjab and Haryana farmers from burning stubble, or agricultural waste.

These squads will collaborate with state anti-pollution bodies and cover 16 districts of Punjab and 10 in Haryana. The latter goes to polls in an Assembly election this weekend.

On Friday, a bench of Supreme Court Justices Abhay S Oka and AG Masih observed that the threat of toxic clouds is smothering Delhi and surrounding areas, a regular winter phenomenon over the past several years, with a lack of breeze meaning vehicular pollution, dust from construction activities, and smog from farm fires blankets and chokes the city.

The top court slammed the CAQM for "total non-compliance" with the law.

"Have committees been constituted? Please show us a single step taken, which directions have you used... Just see the affidavit. Show us a single direction issued under S 12 and others," the court said, unimpressed when told the CAQM only meets once in three months.

Air quality levels at this time of the year plummet to severe lows with AQI levels routinely reaching 500+ (the highest value to measure pollution levels) and respiratory illnesses spiking.

Last week air quality levels in Delhi fell to 235 in the 'poor' category for the first time in nearly four months. The CAQM blamed the vehicular traffic in Delhi.

The Delhi government, meanwhile, has unveiled a 'winter action plan', which includes 21 initiatives to combat air pollution levels. These measures include sprinkling water on roads.

The pollution crisis in the city is also an annual spat between the Aam Aadmi Party, which is in power in Delhi and Punjab, and the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, which is in power in neighbouring Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, with each side accusing the other of inaction.

Support Our Journalism

We cannot do without you.. your contribution supports unbiased journalism

IBNS is not driven by any ism- not wokeism, not racism, not skewed secularism, not hyper right-wing or left liberal ideals, nor by any hardline religious beliefs or hyper nationalism. We want to serve you good old objective news, as they are. We do not judge or preach. We let people decide for themselves. We only try to present factual and well-sourced news.

Support objective journalism for a small contribution.
Close menu