With air quality still bad, trucks to move freely to avoid congestion, pollution

As the air quality of Delhi-NCR swung between "very-poor" and "severe", the authorities on Monday allowed day-long "toll free" entry of over a thousand trucks, halted at Delhi border for a week, to decongest the outer region, helping in reducing pollution.

Delhi and the NCR continued to suffer a severe air quality due to high level of aggregation of pollutants due to the current meteorological conditions.

No new entry of trucks apart from those halted at border will be allowed till further notice, said the Supreme Court-appointed Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority (EPCA).

Earlier a day before Diwali, EPCA barred entry of trucks in Delhi due to extreme pollution. The ban was extended to Monday, November 12 due to 'severe' air quality.

"It is also clear that this accumulation of trucks is adding to congestion on roads and also pollution in the neighbouring areas," said an EPCA direction.

"All trucks at the border will be allowed to enter Delhi, but will not be asked to stop to pay toll or ECC for this period from November 12 to November 13, 7am," the order said.

It added that by relaxing the payment of Toll-ECC, the trucks can move without any stop and this will reduce congestion and reduce pollution.

"No new trucks will be allowed entry and Delhi police will increase their manpower at all entry points to ensure that there is no congestion and that the number of trucks entering are limited to those that are already at the entry gates," EPCA directed the authorities.

--IANS

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