The capital city of India is now world’s number one in air pollution. According to a global study Delhi’s air is highly toxic and killing 80 people every day.
While centre isn’t ready to acknowledge vehicular emission as the main source of air pollution in Delhi, AAP government considers it a critical issue and has it in its priority list. The greatest part of the initiative is that the government will not only check vehicular emission, polluting industries, and other sources of air pollution, but also launch high-impact public awareness drivers in August this year.
The comprehensive plan to cut air pollution mainly focuses on pollution monitoring, more efficient pollution checks for vehicles and prohibiting polluting industries.
Air pollution in Delhi has doubled in 14-years, according to the Delhi government. The number of lethal PM10 has reached alarming 318 microgram per cubic meter, which is way beyond safe level (60 microgram per cubic meter).
The major cause of rise is increasing number of vehicles in Delhi. As compared to 31.64 lakh during 1999-2000, Delhi has 88.27 lakh registered vehicles on roads in 2014-15. Surprisingly, last year has witnessed an addition of whopping 5.69 lakh vehicles.
The plan lays emphasis on the betterment of public transportation system. For transport structure, AAP government has proposed a budget of Rs. 5,085 crore for 2015-16, which is 23 percent higher than previous year.
It’s a great idea to give priority to public transport over private vehicles owned by individuals. An efficient public transport system can cut use of private vehicles for daily commuting.
The plan also includes complete ban on burning of agriculture waste, leaves, and check on dust pollution from construction sites.
Along with these measures, the government is looking to revive, so far, ineffective plantation drives. A part of Rs. 526-crore publicity budget will be allocated for public awareness.
The chief minister, Arvind Kejariwal, assured authorities a hurdle free environment for planning and execution of infrastructure projects required to meet the goals. This is the first time, Delhi government has come out with a comprehensive plan to deal with air pollution. All it need is a aggressive execution in order to make a difference in real-time.