New Delhi: Environment Minister of Delhi Gopal Rai on Monday submitted a letter to Lieutenant Governor for enforcing firecracker ban in the region effectively. Rai said, “I have written a letter to LG sir that despite the ban on firecrackers, firecrackers are being brought from the border and sold.” Rai also highlighted five issues that need urgent attention from both public and the governments.
In a press statement, Rai said, “As per the suggestion of environment scientists, in view of pollution the next 15 days are decisive for entire northern India. For this people of Delhi and neighbouring states along with the government of these states need to be prepared for this.” To curb the problem of pollution in the next 15 days of the festive season, Rai highlighted 5 chief causes of pollution and requested the residents, the Union and the state governments to take appropriate steps for tackling them.
Five factors mentioned by Gopal Rai that need serious attention
1. The contribution of smoke from stubble burning is increasing. This needs to be controlled through close monitoring. We discussed about this issue in the meeting with Union and state governments.
2. The second danger is from smoke of firecrackers. Burning of firecrackers in Delhi and NCR aggravates pollution in the region. We made an appeal to the neighbouring states to take action in this regard.
3. The pollution from vehicles need to be controlled. Public must keep the engines of vehicles off at red lights in these 15 days.
4. Try using public transport instead of using private vehicles as traffic congestion can aggravate pollution.
5. Report quickly by taking a photo in ‘Green Delhi’ app if you see fire at any place.
In the letter to LG Saxena, Rai wrote that as per Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) there is a lack of sufficient enforcement machinery. This reduces the effectiveness of the measures invoked by Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM).
