In consonance with the emergency plan to tackle the menace of pollution after the air quality of national Capital deteriorated to “very poor”, the Delhi Government has decided to incentivise the use of public transport as it decided to give 10 per cent discount on common mobility card or Metro card in DTC cluster buses. The concessions have been provided so as to encourage people to take public transport and refrain from commuting in their private vehicles. The Metro card usage started in DTC cluster buses on August 24.

“This was necessary in view of rising air pollution to encourage more and more people to use public transport,” said, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia. While the burning of the biomass is the major cause of smog that engulfs Delhi year after year in winters the enforcement of GRAP offers very little hope to Delhiites this winter.

The Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) being followed by the Delhi Government in combating pollution requires various contingency measures to be implemented at several stages of air quality, the one which also includes incentivising use of public transport and increasing the parking fees.

With unabated stubble burning in neighbouring states the Delhi Government is apparently on its toes and has pulled all stops it can to combat the increasing pollution.

Sensing trouble that awaits Delhi, the Delhi Government is knocking on the doors of neighbouring State Governments and Centre but not to much avail.  Deputy Chief Minister appealed to the Central Government and the Governments of Haryana and Punjab to initiate immediate measures in the wake of deteriorating air quality in north India, including Delhi.

“The Centre should intervene. Farmers have not been given subsidy. This is the failure on the part of the Central Government and State Governments. As December and January are near, the entire north India, including Delhi, is close to becoming a gas chamber,” he said.

Sisodia said the Government since last year has made several efforts which improved Delhi’s air quality and had requested the Centre as well as the Governments of Punjab and Haryana to take measures in this regard, but despite assurances, the air quality has deteriorated.

On Wednesday, Delhi’s Environment Minister Imran Hussain said the latest satellite images showed crop residue burning at “dangerous” levels and asserted that it should be stopped immediately or entire north India would suffer serious health hazards.

Hussain, who released the latest NASA image of north India, asked people of Delhi to minimise local pollution, while noting that there will be “zero tolerance” for garbage and crop residue burning.

He also asked people to keep all construction material covered to stop dust re-suspension. The Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), which prescribes a set of measures to curb air pollution based on the Central Pollution Control Board’s (CPCB) daily Air Quality Index (AQI), is already in effect in the national capital since Monday.

The air quality of Delhi remained “very poor” for the second consecutive day Thursday, with several areas in the national Capital nearing severe levels of pollution, according to authorities. The overall AQI of Delhi was recorded at 315, according to the Centre-run System of Air Quality Forecasting and Research (SAFAR).

The AQI Wednesday for the first time this season was recorded at 315.