Pollution

according the CPCB data.

In Haryana, Panipat recorded the worst air in the state with an AQI of 415 — in the “severe” category. Other major towns in Haryana such as Sirsa (378), Jind (355) and Hisar (336) among others had “very poor” air, according to the CPCB data. NCR cities in Haryana were also in the “very poor” category with Gurugram recording an AQI of 368, Faridabad was at 387 and Rohtak at 306.

On Diwali night, thousands flouted the Supreme Court-enforced two-hour limit for bursting crackers. The apex court had also ordered that only green firecrackers, which cause 30% less pollution, be sold, but officials said a large number of illegal crackers were burst on Diwali.

Since then, pollution levels have been oscillating between the higher end of the “very poor” category and the “severe” zone.

According to scientists at pollution forecasting agencies, the air is likely to worsen over the next two days since the wind is bringing in particulates from the northwest, where farm fires have been raging.

Satellites picked up at least 2,275 instances of farm fire in Punjab and Haryana on Monday. On Saturday, the figure stood at 2,505, the most recorded on a single day this season. Experts have previously predicted more crop residue around the time of Diwali since farmers can show them as incidental fires.

Pollutants from stubble burning zones in Haryana and Punjab travel to Delhi only when the wind direction is westerly or north-westerly.

Crop residue burning is a practice farmers use to quickly and cheaply ready their fields for the next round of sowing.

Farm fires and emissions from firecrackers result in heavy concentrations of PM2.5 ultra-fine particles in the air, which can lead to major health problems since they can enter the bloodstream after penetrating deep into the lungs.

Farm fires are largely seen as the reason for the air to enter hazardous levels at the start of winters in recent years. In a bid to check this, the Union and state government in Delhi, Punjab and Haryana have announced strict penalties on farmers who burn crop residue.

Meanwhile, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday appealed “with folded hands” to Punjab and Haryana to take concrete steps against stubble burning to prevent the national capital from becoming a “gas chamber”.

Kejriwal said the Delhi government is taking all steps to reduce pollution. “I appeal to the Punjab and Haryana governments with folded hands on behalf of the residents of Delhi to take strong steps and prevent Delhi from becoming a gas chamber.

SAFAR said an increase in the wind speed will help disperse pollutants and the pollution levels are expected to come down. However, officials at the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said a significant increase in the wind speed is unlikely over the next two days and similar conditions are expected to prevail.

The AQI takes into account five chief pollutants - particulate matter with a diameter less than 10 micrometres (PM10), PM2.5, ozone (O3), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and carbon monoxide (CO).

In previous years, schools in the capital were forced to be closed due to dramatic rise in air pollution with people, especially the elderly and young children, being asked not to go out. Under the emergency measures, bans on construction work and entry of heavy vehicles into Delhi are also implemented to control emissions. Industries running on coal are also asked to cease operations.

Experts also said that a drop in temperatures could increase the chances of morning fog in the coming days. During fog, moisture binds to dust particles, making them heavier and harder to disperse. kash Javadekar and senior Sena leaders.

“Union minister Prakash Javdekar and party leader Bhupendra Yadav were supposed to attend the meeting to start discussions on formation of the next government from the BJP side, while the Sena would have been represented by Subhash Desai and Sanjay Raut,” the Sena leader said.

At Tuesday’s presser, Fadnavis asserted he will be the chief minister for next five years. “There should be no doubt in anybody’s mind that it will be a BJPled government for next five years,” he said.

To a query if the BJP will give the deputy chief minister’s post to Shiv Sena, Fadnavis said, “Appropriate decision will be taken.” On the Sena talking about other options, the CM said both the allies have no other alternative.

“We will form the government together. Reasonable demands on merit will be considered when we sit to talk government formation. There is no plan B. Plan A is successful,” he said.

Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray last week reminded the BJP of the 50-50 formula “agreed upon” between himself, Amit Shah and Fadnavis ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.

The Sena demanded a written assurance from the BJP for implementing “equal formula for sharing of power” before holding talks on staking the claim to form the next alliance government in the state.

On Tuesday, the Sena also released an old video clip to “rebut” the CM’S claims on sharing of power in which the latter purportedly talked about equal sharing of posts and responsibilities in the Bjp-led state government.

“Uddhavji has cancelled the meeting scheduled at 4 pm on Tuesday. We have sent out the clip of the CM speaking about sharing posts and responsibilities equally. Fadnavis should mind his words while making such statements,” the senior leader told PTI.

The clip with a caption “Jara yaad karo jabani (remember the assurance)” was put out by Harshal Pradhan, a close aide of Thackeray. “We have decided equal sharing of posts and responsibilities once we come to power again,” Fadnavis is quoted as saying in Marathi at the presser to announce tie-up for 2019 general elections.

In a related development earl i e r i n t he d a y , Fadnavis announced that Shah will not be attending the BJP legislature party meeting on Wednesday. A BJP leader had last week said that Shah might visit Thackeray.

In the elections held for the 288member House, the BJP won 105 seats, a loss of 17 seats compared to its 2014 tally. The Sena’s tally also came down to 56 seats from 63 in 2014. A resurgent Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) won 54 and the Congress bagged 44 seats. power employed by the Punjab Police. Under the previous regime, security personnel were being deployed without proper records being maintained. In contrast, security is now given on need basis, with periodic reviews undertaken to ensure that there is no abuse of power in this regard.”

Former director general of the Uttar Pradesh Police, Prakash Singh, said the reduction in the number of VIPS across the country is a welcome sign. “It’s a positive sign that the number of VIPS has come down but it is no consolation that number of security personnel hasn’t changed. There should be more boots on the ground for public and in police stations,” he said.

“The VIP culture still dominates the Indian mindset, which should be done away with. Only in exceptional cases, security should be provided. Generally what happens is that a person manages to get a threat letter and the local police provide him/her security under political pressure or recommendation from the head of police. Government should try and bring this number (of VIPS) to 5,000,” Singh added.

A senior MHA official said, “Reducing the number of police protectees is part of a larger exercise to divert the police for important law and order duties. It was often seen that people who don’t require security kept it for a longer period. The Intelligence Bureau and state police forces have been repeatedly told to be realistic while analysing a threat to a person. This number will further reduce in the coming years.”

To be sure, even though the number of VIPS getting police protection has come down significantly, the number of police personnel deployed for their security has increased marginally with 56,933 personnel deployed for 17,468 VIPS in 2017 — or roughly three policemen per person as against 56,900 for 20,828 VIPS in 2016.

On the other hand, an average of one police personnel was deployed in the country for every 663 ordinary citizens in 2017, the BPRD data revealed. There were about 1.94 million police personnel in the country, while the total population in India on October 1, 2017, was estimated to be 1.29 billion.

The BPRD report did not include VIPS under police protection in Jammu & Kashmir, Nagaland, Mizoram, Tamil Nadu and Arunachal Pradesh. In 2016, 2,075 persons in J&K were under police protection.