The Delhi government is set to roll out an intensive anti-dust campaign aimed at combating air pollution from October 7 to November 7 as part of its Winter Action Plan, Environment Minister Gopal Rai announced here on Saturday.

According to him, a total of 523 teams from 13 departments have been mobilized to monitor dust control efforts across the city. He said that all construction sites over 500 square meters plot size must register on the Construction and Demolition portal, with strict inspections and enforcement of 14 dust control guidelines. To further curb pollution, 85 Mechanical Road Sweeping (MRS) machines and 500 water sprinklers will be deployed, the minister added.

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Delhi Environment Minister, at a press conference, claimed that air pollution in Delhi is continuously improving, which is a result of the strict measures taken by the state government. To buttress his claim, he said due to the steps taken by the government, Delhi’s air pollution has seen a reduction of 34.6 per cent in the last 9 years,” . He further said, “To deal with the problem of pollution in the winter season, a Winter Action Plan based on 21 focus points was announced on 25 September. To further improve air pollution in Delhi, under the Winter Action Plan, our government is starting an anti-dust campaign in Delhi for the next one month from 7 October.”

Elaborating on rules for construction sites, the minister added that it is necessary to build a high tin wall around the construction site on all construction sites to prevent dust. Further speaking on dust pollution, he said that earlier there was a rule to install anti-smog guns only on construction sites above 20,000 square meters, but now on the basis of the new rule, it has been made mandatory to install anti-smog guns on construction sites with an area of 5,000 square meters and more.

“There should be 1 anti-smog gun on a construction site of 5,000 to 10,000 square meters, 2 on a site of 10,000 to 15,000 square meters, 3 on a construction site of 15,000 to 20,000 square meters and at least 4 anti-smog guns on a construction site above 20,000 square meters,” he added.

Meanwhile, he has also appealed to the centre that it must soon call for the yearly meeting of the northern states’ (Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh) environment and agriculture ministers with regard to the environment, ahead of the winters. According to him, every year the Union Environment and Agriculture Ministers conduct a meeting with the concerned ministers of Uttar Pradesh , Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan and he believes that it becomes easier to implement pollution prevention measures on ground with the involvement of concerned ministers.

Rai informed that the Commission for AIr Quality Management (CAQM) held an officer level meeting, but he is yet to receive the details regarding that meeting. He further said that the Punjab government should be praised for its efforts due to which last year there was 50 per cent less stubble burning in the state.