Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai has urged Uttar Pradesh Transport Minister Dayashankar Singh to issue directions to the authorities concerned to direct the non-destined vehicles to Eastern and Western Peripheral Expressway at the entry points before Delhi Border.

In his letter he wrote to Dayashankar Singh on Friday, Rai said, “I would like to bring to your kind notice that during the visit of Delhi Cabinet minister on various Delhi borders in the night of November 9, it was noticed that non destined vehicles, which were supposed to be diverted through the Eastern and Western Peripheral ways are entering through the border and plying via Delhi for their out of Delhi destinations, causing vehicular air pollution in Delhi.”

“In this regard, it is requested that directions be issued to the concerned to ensure that all the non-destined vehicles should be diverted through Eastern and Western Peripheral Expressway right at their entry points before Delhi border,” the letter read.

Accordingly, additional enforcement teams may be deployed at all the entry points to peripheral ways to ensure the implementation of the aforesaid directions, added Rai.

It may be mentioned here that the minister recently conducted a surprise inspection of Kashmere Gate ISBT in the national capital to check vehicular pollution.

Meanwhile, following the rainfall on Friday, there was a slight improvement in Delhi’s air quality on Saturday. The air quality, which was previously categorized as ‘Very Poor’ by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), has now improved to the ‘Poor’ category.

As per the AQI recorded at 7 am on Saturday, Anand Vihar was at 295, RK Puram at 230, Punjabi Bagh at 244, and ITO at 263.

Last month, the Aam Aadmi Party-led government in Delhi launched the city government’s “Red Light On, Gaadi Off” campaign in a bid to reduce vehicular pollution in the city. The goal of the campaign is to make people turn off their vehicle engines at red lights.