Delhi bans open burning as air pollution worsens
NEW DELHI: The Indian Government has banned open burning of wastes in Delhi and its surrounding areas to tackle air pollution crisis.
With air quality turning many times more hazardous than what’s considered safe for human health, the Indian capital is grappling with a growing environmental disaster.
Federal Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan ordered authorities in the national capital region – Delhi and its satellite cities Faridabad, Gurugram, Ghaziabad and Noida – to combat air pollution.
Industrial pollution, transport fumes, construction dust and stubble burning by farmers in neighbouring states are major contributors to the toxic environment.
Winter months witness a spike in lung and heart ailments in the city of 20 million people as air pollution gets worse.
Vardhan said though the incidents of crop burning this year were 30 per cent less than the previous year, the overall steps taken by the state governments of Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan to control the problem were not satisfactory.
“In Punjab only, daily cases of stubble burning were still running into thousands,” the minister said in a statement.
He ordered the Delhi state government and the neighbouring states to ensure ‘100 per cent stoppage’ of open burning of domestic and industrial wastes.
“In case of repeat violations, criminal proceedings against defaulters will also be initiated,” the minister warned.