New Delhi, Oct 16 (IANS) The Delhi government led by Chief Minister Rekha Gupta has initiated a comprehensive Winter Action Plan for 2025–26 to tackle the seasonal spike in air pollution between October and February, Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said on Thursday.

The plan spans 25 action points under seven themes – road dust, vehicular emissions, industry and power, open burning and solid waste, citizen interface and monitoring, and green innovation – coordinating with over 30 departments and agencies across the capital, he said.

Chairing a high-level review, Sirsa directed senior officials to ensure strict, time-bound implementation and real-time monitoring through the Green War Room, with clear accountability across PWD, MCD, NDMC, DSIIDC, DPCC, Transport, Delhi Police, and allied agencies.

Emphasising preparedness, he stated: “Compliance will be non-negotiable this winter – dust control, construction norms, PNG-only industrial operations, and targeted enforcement are being scaled with precision and speed.”

The Environment Minister emphasised that all 30 stakeholder agencies — including PWD, DDA, MCD, NDMC, DSIIDC, DPCC, and Delhi Police — have been directed to maintain daily coordination through the Green War Room.

“Citizens are our partners—use the Green Delhi App, follow GRAP advisories, and opt for public transport and EVs as the city scales e-mobility,” he said.

Sharing details to deal with road dust, he said 86 Mechanical Road Sweepers, 300 water sprinklers, and 362 anti-smog guns are currently deployed citywide, with procurement initiated for 70 additional sweepers and allied dust-control assets to expand coverage and frequency. Routes are GPS-tracked and monitored centrally.

All major roads under PWD, MCD, NDMC and DSIIDC will be vacuum-swept with additional shifts; strict 14-point construction dust norms remain mandatory, with online registration for all projects over plots of over 500 sqm, he said.

Sirsa said anti-smog guns are compulsory for projects above 3,000 sqm and for offices/institutes above G+5; departments will ensure full compliance.

“A special drive targets 698 km of roadside paving and 85 km of central verge greening,” he said.

Highlighting measures on vehicular emission control, he said enforcement has been intensified with 578 teams checking PUC, visible smoke, and idling violations; 953 PUC centres are live with real-time feeds to the Transport Department dashboard.

Parking fees will be doubled under GRAP Stages III/IV to discourage private vehicle use during severe episodes, while DMRC’s e-auto fleet will expand to 2,299, and EV share in new registrations will remain above 12 per cent, he said.

Directions of the Supreme Court of India and CAQM on restricting the entry of polluting goods vehicles are being tightly enforced at all borders, he said.

For waste management and checking open burning, he said 443 teams are on 24×7 patrol to prevent garbage and biomass burning, with on-the-spot penalties and prosecutions for violators.

Landfill safety has improved significantly — with zero landfill fires recorded in 2025, supported by permanent watch towers and hydrants, he said.

For preventing agricultural residue and local burning, a drive is underway to achieve 100 per cent coverage of fields with PUSA decomposer to suppress stubble burning within NCTD’s jurisdiction.

The dedicated field vigilance includes 11-day patrols and 5-night patrols, with real-time reporting through a mobile app for swift response and action, he said.

He also said that a pilot cloud-seeding programme with IIT Kanpur and IMD is planned, subject to meteorological clearance, to evaluate particulate washout as an emergency response tool.

–IANS

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