Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud said he has stopped going for morning walks due to rising air pollution in Delhi. He said his doctor had advised him not to go for morning walks as the bad air could cause breathing problems.
The CJI said this while talking to reporters at the pre-Diwali celebrations organized at the Supreme Court. Justice Chandrachud is retiring on November 10. At the event, the CJI also announced that it will no longer be mandatory for journalists to have a law degree to cover Supreme Court proceedings.
Meanwhile, with the onset of winter season, Delhi's air quality has already reached the 'very poor' category. According to the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), the Air Quality Index (AQI) in Delhi was recorded at 385 on Thursday morning. At the same time, poisonous foam is beginning to appear in the river Yamuna.
Image of Yamuna river at 8 am on Thursday. White foam appears in the river.
An emergency meeting was held in Delhi regarding pollution Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai held an emergency meeting on October 18 regarding pollution. He said there are a total of 13 hotspots where the AQI has crossed 300. The minister instructed the officials to take necessary steps and said- find out the reason why the pollution is increasing so much.
Gopal Rai said that the air quality of Delhi-NCR is deteriorating due to increasing cold. The level of pollution is increasing since last two days. Due to which people are suffering from sore throat, breathing problem and eye irritation. It also increases the risk of skin related diseases.
13 hot spots, AQI is highest here
| the place | AQI | |
| 1 | India Gate | 251 |
| 2 | Mundka | 366 |
| 3 | Two | 359 |
| 4 | Wazirpur | 306 |
| 5 | Jahangirpuri | 317 |
| 6 | Akshar Dham | 334 |
| 7 | Anand Vihar | 283 |
| 8 | Rohini | 379 |
| 9 | Dwarka Sector-10 | 357 |
| 10 | Narela | 374 |
| 11 | Vivek Vihar | 205 |
| 12 | Okhla Phase-II | 313 |
| 13 | Punjabi Bagh | 393 |
Water Board meeting on foaming in Yamuna
Image of foam in Yamuna River at Kalindi Kunj.
The poisonous foam of the river Yamuna appears. Experts say that the amount of ammonia and phosphate in it is very high. It can cause serious damage to health. Major festivals like Chhath Puja are approaching. During this time, toxic foam can cause problems.
Delhi Jal Board has held a meeting regarding this. The Jal Board wants to remove the dirt before Chhath Puja. In fact, every year hundreds of devotees come to Okhla's Kalindi Kunj barrage to bathe in the river during Chhath Puja.
An official present at the meeting claimed that portable anti-surfactant sprinklers will be installed downstream of the Okhla barrage before and during Chhath Puja. Along with this, river and canal cleaning work will also be done in Kalindi Kunj.
BJP said – Air and water are poisoned by toxic politics BJP National Spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala said- Yamuna river water has become poisonous. Kejriwal had said that he would clean the Yamuna river by 2025. When people celebrate Chhath Puja festival in river Yamuna, what diseases will they face? All the money raised for cleaning the Yamuna River was spent on advertisements. Toxic politics is the cause of Delhi's toxic air and water.
Environment Minister said – BJP has no right to speak Environment Minister Gopal Rai said- BJP has no right to say anything on Delhi's environment. Because BJP government is sleeping in UP, Haryana, Rajasthan and Center.
Graded Response Action Plan active in Delhi-NCR
With increasing pollution in Noida, smog also starts increasing. To prevent this, GRAP is applied.
On 14 October, the first phase of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) was activated in Delhi-NCR. Under this, stringent restrictions were imposed in view of the increasing level of pollution.
The decision was taken after a meeting of the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM). CAQM said that as pollution levels increase, stages and restrictions will increase.
If it is between 301 to 400 then its second phase will be applicable. When the AQI is between 401 to 450, the third stage of monitoring will take place. If the AQI is above 450, restrictions will be imposed in the fourth stage.
These controls will be under GRAP-1
- All types of construction materials must be covered. Water sprinkling and mechanical cleaning should be done on the roads.
- Anti-smog guns should be used at major intersections in the city.
- No kind of garbage etc. will be burnt in open area.
- Jams on roads will be controlled. Maximum fine will be levied on polluting vehicles.
- Illegal stone crushers and other constructions will be banned in the city.
- Diesel vehicles older than 10 years and petrol vehicles older than 15 years will be banned from the road.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
