NHAI asks officials to check pollution at construction sites

Amid worsening pollution in Delhi, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) today asked its officials to initiate immediate steps like sprinkling of water at highway construction sites.
"Chairman NHAI (Deepak Kumar) has issued specific instructions to the field officials to take all possible steps to reduce contribution of the highways sector towards air pollution in Delhi NCR," a statement from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said.
The steps to be taken by NHAI include water sprinkling at all construction sites and camps, covering of all construction material/waste, including fly ash, being transported in the Delhi NCR region, adherence to the air quality norms by all plants and machinery and covering of exposed soil.

Kumar instructed the officials to inspect the construction sites regularly to ensure that all the pollution control measures are adhered to in a strict manner.
The move follows worsening conditions in Delhi with toxic haze hovering over the city.
The smog, which triggered near zero visibility at many places and pile-ups on highways, is a mixture of carbon monoxide, particulate matter such as PM2.5, PM10, ground level ozone and oxides of nitrogen and sulphur dioxide, as per a Delhi government health advisory.