The increase in stubble burning has kicked off a political slugfest, with Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav on Wednesday saying that there had been a 19 per cent rise in farm fires over 2021 in Punjab and that the Aam Aadmi Party had turned the national capital into a gas chamber.
The Taj Mahal in Agra was engulfed in a layer of haze on Monday morning amid the rise in air pollution levels, with tourists unable to believe their eyes.
The report on the alleged liquor scam, a hot button issue in the run-up to the elections, claimed a loss of revenue to the tune of Rs 941.53 crore, saying timely permissions were not taken for opening the liquor vends in non-conforming municipal wards.
Authorities have suspended civil construction works in Delhi and Haryana as part of emergency measures to improve air quality.
Delhi is witnessing an "emergency situation" due to alarming pollution level, the Centre on Saturday said and called a meeting of environment ministers of all neighbouring states on Monday to curb stubble burning by farmers which has made Delhi a "gas chamber".
'If we don't control the additional pollutants that come from various human activities then, the pollution level will not come down.'
The BJP's hyper-local campaign targeting the AAP's loyal base among the poor, along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's depiction of Delhi's ruling party as "AAP-da" (disaster), proved decisive in the Delhi assembly elections. This victory marks the end of a 26-year drought for the BJP in the national capital. The BJP's campaign highlighted perceived failures in governance and corruption allegations against the AAP, while emphasizing its own welfare schemes. The party's focus on local issues resonated with voters, particularly the middle class and poor who were disenchanted with the AAP's performance. This win is a major setback for the AAP and the INDIA bloc, which has been on a losing streak after its strong performance in the Lok Sabha elections.
The overall AQI deteriorated further and touched the 268 mark, which falls in the poor category.
A strong dust storm and gusty winds followed by rain hit Delhi-NCR on Friday evening, causing trees to be uprooted in several parts and leading to traffic congestion. Thunderstorms caused power disruptions in several parts of the city, primarily due to trees and branches falling on electricity cables. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an orange alert, recommending people stay indoors and avoid unnecessary travel.
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.
The air quality in Delhi remained poor Sunday with drop in wind speed even as authorities predicted further fall in air quality index of the national capital in the coming days.
Noting the pendency of issues related to firecrackers before the Supreme Court, the Delhi high court on Thursday refused to entertain a petition challenging Delhi Pollution Control Committee's complete ban on sale and use of all kinds of firecrackers.
'When you are travelling in Mumbai when the air quality is bad, you feel suffocated.' 'You may feel uncomfortable breathing Delhi air, but the level of discomfort is higher in Mumbai.'
The clarification by the top court, which had in 2018 banned the bursting of conventional firecrackers to curb air and sound pollution, will have ramifications across the nation.
La Nina, construction worsen air quality; spike in respiratory ailments.
The news may come as a relief to the Delhi government, whose odd-even traffic rule is set to be rolled out from January 1.
The PM2.5 level (presence in the air of particles with a diametre of less than 2.5 micrometres) touched a new high at 158 as authorities predicted further deterioration of air quality in the coming days.
Delhi's toxic air has left some of the women boxers, gathered in the city for the AIBA World Championship, gasping for breath but Indian people's renowned hospitality is providing some comfort.
A Delhiite himself, Shikhar Dhawan was on Tuesday candid in his admission that the city's air quality is poor, but insisted that it cannot come in the way of going about their job of playing as professional cricketers.
The environment ministry is likely to soon issue regulations that will mandate automakers to recycle a specified percentage of steel from old vehicles, starting from the next financial year, according to people familiar with the matter. "We recently held a meeting with members of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam). "The final regulations are likely to be issued in the next 10 days," a government source informed.
The work to remove 377 metric tonnes of hazardous waste from the now-defunct Union Carbide factory in Bhopal has begun. The waste will be transported to an incineration site in Pithampur near Indore, around 250 km from Bhopal. The move comes after the Madhya Pradesh High Court ordered the authorities to clear the site, 40 years after the deadly gas leak that killed thousands and left hundreds of thousands with health problems.
"We have to make government responsible for this," the bench said and asked, "Why can't govt machinery stop stubble burning?"
Gaps in enforcement, limited monitoring, and easy access to firecrackers from the NCR region where restrictions were slack were largely responsible for the widespread flouting of the cracker ban in Delhi on Diwali, experts have opined.
Uncertainty looms over Lanka-Bangla World Cup clash due to severe air pollution
The smog reduced the visibility to merely 300 meters in the morning affecting traffic, an official of the India Meteorological Department said.
The Punjab government dismissed claims that it owned the car intercepted in Delhi. The vehicle's number plate was forged and fake as it can be tracked to a different car not owned by the Punjab government, it said. The AAP, too, released a statement, saying the car seizure was a "planted stunt, ?poorly executed and utterly bogus".
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday returned to power in Delhi after more than 26 years to sweep away the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party with a two-thirds majority on the back of a hyper localised campaign and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'AAP-da'(disaster) blitzkrieg.
Researchers found that India, along with China and Japan, were the three leading countries in Asia in terms of number of new cases and deaths, where they say cancer has become a more significant public health threat with 94 lakh new cases and 56 lakh deaths in 2019.
A directive this year to ban all vehicles older than 15 years has been delayed and previous city governments have often ignored court orders to address pollution woes.
The Dyson Pure Hot + Cool is expensive but worth the price. It clearly differentiates itself from similar machines in both looks and performance, says Khalid Anzar.
Days after saying that there is no need for subsidies to achieve greater penetration of electric vehicles (EVs), Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Monday clarified that the view is his own, but any official call on EV subsidies is not one that he can take.
The city's AQI on Friday was the worst since the previous high recorded on November 12, 2021.
'They did the right thing if they were protesting against it. Medically there was no reason to continue the match; it must have been taken off'
The city's overall air quality index stood at 306 on Friday.
Health expert termed the problems caused due to the rise in pollution as a "medical emergency".
Delhi environment minister Gopal Rai on Monday said the ban on construction and demolition activities in Delhi will continue till further orders in view of the high air pollution levels.
At 9 am on Tuesday, the overall AQI of Delhi docked at 381, which falls in the 'very poor' category.
The official data maintained by the Centre-run System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research put the condition at severely polluted. The Particulate Matter 2.5 level was recorded at 146 while the PM 10 was at 233 in New Delhi.
Delhi's air quality was again in the severe category with the 24-hour average AQI recorded at 403 after remaining in the 'very poor' category till Tuesday morning, when the AQI was recorded at 396.
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