As the national Capital fights the toxic smog that has blanketed the city for over a week now, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday announced several key measures, including closure of schools for a week, ban on construction activities and work-from-home for Government employees.
The Kejriwal Government swung into action after the Supreme Court pulled up both the State and Central Government for failing to tackle the menace of air pollution and suggested a two-day lockdown.
Delhi’s Air Quality Index (AQI) settled at 499 micrograms per cubic and was “severe” on the National Ambient Air quality Index (NAAQI) on Saturday.
Sharing the minutes of the meeting after consulting with concerned departments, Kejriwal said schools in Delhi will remain shut for a week from Monday while virtual (online) classed will continue.
As construction dust in winter also causes pollution due to unfavourable weather conditions, Kejriwal said construction activities will be prohibited for four days from November 14 to 17.
“The city Government will issue an advisory to private offices, asking them to allow employees to work from home,” he said, adding, “Government offices are to operate from home at 100 per cent capacity for a week.”
He also said the pollution level is rising in Delhi due to stubble burning in neighboring States and urged all stakeholders to work together to combat it. According to SAFAR (System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research), a unit of the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoEs), the contribution of farm fire in PM 2.5 was 35 per cent on Saturday.
“The AQI indicated severe category and is likely to improve for the next two days as winds at the transport level (925 mb) are slowing down resulting in the lesser intrusion of farm fires related pollutants into Delhi.
“However, as local winds are becoming calm and minimum temperature is decreasing further, preventing efficient dispersion of pollutants leading to improvement of air quality to the upper end of very poor category or lower end of the severe category. The effective fire count reduced to 3157 today (Saturday),” it added.
According to Dr Rajendra Jenamani, MeT scientist (Palam), a thick layer of smog lingered over National Capital Region, lowering the visibility to 200 meters at several places.
SAFAR advised people to stop outdoor activities and reduce vehicle use by at least 30 per cent to combat pollution.