Delhi's air quality plummeted to alarming levels on Tuesday after 24 days, with many areas witnessing a significant spike in pollution despite the strictest measures, including a ban on construction activities and the entry of trucks into the city, coming into force.
The monthly Rs 2500 payment for poor women is expected to cost Rs 11,000 crore while the pension scheme of Rs 2000 for every senior citizen will cost around Rs 4100 crore. The Yamuna clean up will cost over Rs 10,000 crore while a similar amount is required to upgrade Delhi's hospitals. Ultimately, the new BJP government will have no choice but to ask the centre for financial support, notes Rashme Sehgal.
A cold wave has gripped many parts of north and east India, with Srinagar recording a minimum temperature of minus 5.3 degrees Celsius. Other areas experiencing below-freezing temperatures include Gulmarg, Pahalgam, Konibal, Qazigund, Kupwara, and Kokernag in Kashmir. Himachal Pradesh has issued an orange warning for severe cold wave conditions in several districts. Delhi recorded a minimum temperature of 5.9 degrees Celsius, while Faridkot in Punjab was the coldest in the region at 0 degrees Celsius. Extreme cold conditions also continued in parts of Rajasthan and Jharkhand. The Met office has forecast mainly dry weather until December 26, with the possibility of light snowfall in the higher reaches of Kashmir on the intervening night of December 21-22.
Some residents have already taken this step to relocate, either temporarily or permanently, some to their native places and others to clean-air destinations like Goa and Himachal Pradesh.
As visibility remained poor and the city choked due to a haze, the Centre for Science and Environment asked the Delhi govt to roll out stringent plans for controlling winter pollution.
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Deposit of pollution particles on transmission lines was attributed as the reason for tripping, which officials described as a common phenomenon during winter -- which has been unusually long this year. Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana were the most hit due to the failure in the lines.
'Our politicians solely depend on bureaucrats who are unaccountable and follow their own agenda.' 'Our politicians would dare not dream of establishing a DOGE,' argues Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (retd).
An AQI of 400 or higher is deemed 'severe' and it can have an adverse effect on both healthy individuals and people who already have medical conditions.
Keeping up his tradition of celebrating the festival with soldiers, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Sir Creek near the Indo-Pak border in Gujarat's Kutch district and offered sweets to jawans.
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Final practice for the Formula One Grand Prix was twice delayed on Saturday due to smog shrouding the circuit and preventing the medical helicopter from operating.
The Delhi government on Wednesday said the odd-even car rationing scheme will be implemented in the national capital after the Supreme Court reviews its effectiveness and issues an order.
The infant, Mohammad Sarfaraz, who lived with his parents in Shivaji Nagar located near the dumping ground, died early morning on Tuesday.
'If 20,000 people in the stands did not have problem and the Indian team did not face any issue, I wonder why Sri Lankan team made a big fuss. I will need to talk to the secretary and ask him to write to the Sri Lanka Cricket'
The ICC says it is monitoring the air quality in smog-shrouded New Delhi ahead of the World Cup match between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka on Monday.
Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Friday said the odd-even car rationing scheme will not be implemented from November 13 to November 20 as there has been a significant improvement in the national capital's air quality due to rain.
Images from Day 2 of the 3rd Test played between India and Sri Lanka at Feroz Shah Kotla in New Delhi on Sunday
'I think pollution levels have been rising in Delhi for the past 10-12 days. We can feel it in our eyes today. The smog is dense'
The poisonous haze has been causing significant problems for people with existing respiratory issues, according to doctors.
The air pollution problem in the national capital won't go away till we take action -- such as ban the use of dirty fuels, ramp up public transport and oversee crop burning, says Sunita Narain.
In 2022, India was ranked as the eighth most polluted country with an average PM2.5 concentration of 53.3 micrograms per cubic metre.
Current woman world athlete of the year Almaz Ayana of Ethiopia clinched gold in her debut race while compatriot Berhanu Legese won the men's event in the Delhi Half Marathon in New Delhi on Sunday.
Saisuresh Sivaswamy/Rediff.com captures glimpses of the activity around the Ram temple on his iPhone 14 Pro.
The sustainable impact of this process is under scrutiny, Tripathi added.
Chadha also said there is a possibility that fog in Delhi and a recent air show in Mumbai may have added to the troubles of the airline.
Amid a spike in pollution levels in Delhi-NCR, the Supreme Court on Tuesday directed Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan to ensure crop residue burning was stopped "forthwith", saying it cannot let "people die" due to pollution.
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The chief minister said certain steps by the government, including the introduction of an electric vehicle policy in 2020 and 24-hour electricity supply, had led to an 18.6 per cent decline in air pollution levels in the last four years.
Pollution levels in the national capital entered the "severe" zone for the first time this season on Thursday, with scientists warning of a further spike over the next two weeks.
Moreover, Assocham warned that the phenomenon is likely to hurt Brand India and impact the country's tourism
The city recorded a minimum temperature of 14.6 degrees Celsius, a notch above normal, according to the India Meteorological Department.
Among those who have the most to lose from India's haphazard policies are dealers selling cars made by Toyota, Mahindra & Mahindra, Daimler AG's and Tata Motors' luxury arm, Jaguar Land Rover
Byrnihat in Meghalaya topped the list of most polluted cities in India in 2023, closely followed by Begusarai in Bihar and Greater Noida in Uttar Pradesh, according to a report released on Wednesday.
In view of air pollution in the national capital, the December winter break of all schools has been rescheduled and it will be now from November 9 to November 18, a circular of the Delhi Directorate of Education stated on Wednesday.
After Bangladesh, Sri Lanka were forced to cancel their opening training session in the national capital on Saturday due to "severe" air pollution.
'I think some of us, like Mukesh Ambani, myself and those of us who head industrial units, ought to really focus on what we can really do to make the world a safer place, maybe 50 or 100 years from now.' 'For instance, how can we deal with climate change and global warming, right now?' 'The effects of it may not be felt now; in fact, we may pay a price for it today, but it will help the generations to follow.'
The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to list for hearing on November 10 a PIL seeking issuance of fresh guidelines on stubble burning to curb rising air pollution in Delhi and the national capital region (NCR).
The lion's share of the amount -- Rs 1,003 crore (till November 10) -- comes from an Environment Compensation Charge (ECC) imposed by the Supreme Court in 2015 on trucks entering Delhi while the rest is made up of cess on every litre of diesel sold, in effect since 2008.
