Delhi Launches 15-pt Action Plan to Tackle Winter Air Pollution

In a significant move to address the recurring issue of winter air pollution, the
Delhi government has unveiled a 15-point action plan aimed at mitigating air
pollution in the national capital. The plan, spearheaded by Chief Minister Arvind
Kejriwal, places a strong emphasis on tackling dust pollution, vehicular emissions
and open burning of waste.

The primary focus of the winter action plan includes prevention of crop residue
burning, dust pollution control, curbing vehicular and industrial emissions,
regulating open burning of garbage, overseeing firecracker use, tree planting
initiatives, ensuring effective implementation of the Graded Response Action Plan
(Grap), efficient e-waste management and fostering collaboration with
neighbouring states.

To combat crop residue burning, the Delhi government has successfully
implemented a free bio-decomposer technique over the past three years. The
method, which yielded positive results last year, will be used on 5,000 acres of
both Basmati and non-Basmati rice fields this year.

Dust control equipment will be installed at sites exceeding 500 sq mtr, with real-
time monitoring available through a web portal. A total of 591 teams have been
established to ensure strict compliance with dust control norms, and measures
include deployment of 530 water sprinklers and 258 mobile anti-smog guns.
To address vehicular pollution, 385 teams will check Pollution Under Control
(PUC) certificates and enforce the ban on 10-year-old diesel and 15-year-old petrol
vehicles. A total of 611 teams will be responsible for preventing open burning of
waste, while an additional 66 teams will monitor industrial units to ensure they do
not use unauthorised or non-compliant fuels.