New Delhi, May 4 (IANS) In view of the average AQI improving in Delhi, the CAQM Sub-Committee on Monday unanimously decided to revoke all actions under Stage-I of the extant schedule of GRAP in the entire NCR, with immediate effect, an official said.

Delhi’s daily average AQI has significantly improved as it recorded 175 on Sunday, which improved to 88 on Monday owing to rain and favourable meteorological conditions, as per the AQI Bulletin provided by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

The Sub-Committee on Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) of the Commission for Air Quality Management in NCR and Adjoining Areas (CAQM), in its order dated April 16, had invoked Stage-I of the extant GRAP when the average AQI of Delhi started to exhibit an increasing trend.

In an effort to sustain the better AQI levels, all agencies of the concerned State Governments/GNCTD in the NCR need to ensure that all Statutory Directions, Advisories, Orders, etc., issued by the Commission are followed and implemented in right earnest, said a statement.

These include the rules/regulations/guidelines issued by MoE&FCC, the CPCB and related instructions/guidelines issued by the respective State Governments/GNCTD and Pollution Control Boards/DPCC, across all contributing sectors.

In this context, all the agencies concerned are also required to take note of various actions and the targeted timelines as envisaged in the comprehensive policy issued by the Commission to curb air pollution in the NCR and take appropriate actions accordingly in the field, particularly the dust mitigation measures, it said.

The Sub-Committee shall be keeping a close watch on the air quality scenario and review the situation from time to time for further appropriate decision depending upon the air quality in Delhi and forecast made available by IMD/IITM, said the statement.

On April 23, the CAQM said that as many as 34 instances of visible road dust violations were detected by its five flying squads during an inspection drive in Delhi’s Civil Lines and Karol Bagh areas.

The teams detected the violations during field assessments across three zones of Delhi — Civil Lines, Karol Bagh, and West Delhi — falling under the jurisdiction of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) on Wednesday, an official statement said.

Based on the consolidated findings of the inspection teams, a total of 34 violations of visible road dust were observed on different road stretches, including Mahakavi Goswami Tulsidas Marg, Keshopur Road, Najafgarh Road, Vedic Marg, Satguru Ram Singh Marg, Ring Road, Punjabi Bagh, Baba Ramdev Marg, Malkaganj Road, Ramlal Kapoor Marg, Shanti Swaroop Tyagi Marg, Azadpur Road, Bhalswa Dairy Road, and Faiz Road.

These violations primarily pertained to high levels of visible road dust and the accumulation of construction and demolition waste at multiple locations across the inspected zones, the statement said.

–IANS

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