NEW DELHI: Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena directed officials on Wednesday to install modified anti-smog guns atop 125 building across the capital to control dust pollution. At a meeting with officials from the central and state departments concerned, Saxena called for a strict enforcement of measures, time-bound completion of related projects and real-time monitoring of the situation to mitigate the recurrent air pollution problem.
The LG directed the officials to ensure that modified anti-smog guns are installed atop 125 high-rise buildings by October-end to control dust pollution. Ahead of the quarter that witnesses the air quality plummeting to the lowest in Delhi-NCR, the meeting was significant in terms of implementation of the Commission for Air Quality Management’s (CAQM) policy and the related, revised Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), 2022 that will come into effect from October 1.
Saxena asked the officials to identify all such private and public sites in the city following which the CAQM will issue an order for mandatory installation of anti-smog guns. He also directed the municipal corporation department to deploy special teams to ensure that all construction and demolition sites larger than 500 square metre register on the self-assessment portal of the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) and conduct a self-audit of the steps taken to curb dust pollution.
Officials informed the LG that only 28 per cent of the registered construction and demolition sites have complied with the requirement of self-audit. Saxena asked for a public awareness campaign detailing the parameters of the self-audit and requirements of registration to be launched by the MCD, with a deadline of October 15 for such compliance.
He also asked the agencies concerned to immediately start repairing, covering and carpeting roads, pavements, footpaths and central verges. Dust from roads and construction and demolition activities account for 26 per cent of the PM2.5 pollution.