Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Tuesday wrote a letter to State unit presidents of Congress Devender Yadav and BJP Virendra Sachdeva, requesting any "positive suggestions" for incorporation into the Winter Action Plan to reduce pollution levels in the national capital.
Rai stated that the government is preparing the Winter Action Plan focused on three key points including actions by Delhi government, cooperation with neighboring states, and collaboration with the central government to reduce winter pollution and sought their suggestions on the same. He also highlighted the various initiatives taken by the AAP dispensation to solve the pollution problem.
In the letter, he cited a report of the Centre for Science and Environment which states that only 31 per cent of the pollution that the people of Delhi have to face is contributed by the residents while the rest comes from NCR states.
"Pollution can be reduced only with everyone's cooperation, not through opposition. Arvind Kejriwal's government in Delhi has taken many big steps to reduce pollution, their effect is also visible," Rai said in the letter.
He added that the Delhi government is actively reducing air pollution through long- and short-term plans, including successful "Summer" and "Winter Action Plans" in collaboration with all departments. “Due to various measures by the Delhi Government, pollution in Delhi has decreased by about 30 per cent over the last nine years, even as it rises in other cities across the country.
He said the Delhi government is preparing to prepare a winter action plan in collaboration with all concerned departments. "The winter action plan will be mainly based on three points.
First, the steps to be taken by the Delhi Government, second, getting cooperation from the neighbouring states and third, working together with the Central Government so that pollution can be effectively reduced in Delhi even in winter.
"We request you that if you have any positive suggestions on the above three points which will help in reducing the pollution of Delhi, please send those to us soon so that we can include them in the action plan. We aim to reduce the pollution of Delhi," read Rai's letter.
Meanwhile, Sachdeva posed 10 questions for Rai including why the Delhi government hasn’t wrote to Punjab, an AAP ruled state and the areas to get artificial rain. “Truth is that Delhi elections are scheduled for ensuing December or January which are worst polluted months and Kejriwal government has started a letter game on pollution issue just to create ready excuses for the election days,” he said.
