'Centre must act on war footing to combat bad air in Delhi'

The government must take steps on a "war footing" to improve air quality in Delhi and all unscientific development projects and construction works should be stopped immediately as part of initial measures, a Congress MP said today.
Raising the issue during Zero Hour in the Lok Sabha, Mullappally Ramachandran said Delhi has become one of the most polluted cities globally and the Centre must act with a sense of urgency to deal with the problem.
"It is terrifying to see people wearing masks to protect themselves from pollution, closure of all schools... For any nation, health of its citizens must be precious. The government must act on a war-footing to deal with the situation," he said.

The MP from Kerala demanded stopping of "all unscientific development projects and construction works immediately" as part of measures to improve the air quality.
He also said the government should also examine how to deal with stubble burning in neighbouring states which is identified as one of the reasons behind increasing levels of pollution in Delhi.
Last month, the city government had ordered all schools to be closed for four days after the capital was engulfed by a thick cover of smog.
The dangerous level of pollution had triggered massive health concerns following which local authorities had announced a series of short term measures like spraying of water from fire trucks to keep pollutants down.