Page 42 - Air Pollution

Latest LIVE updates: Strong earthquake tremors felt across Delhi-NCR

Catch all the latest updates from across the globe here

Air pollution: Rs 24.30-lakh fine imposed on 39 GRAP violations in Noida

As many as 39 violations of GRAP III were recorded in Noida and penalties worth Rs 24.30 lakh were imposed on offenders, including real estate developers, on Friday, officials said. As many as 26 challans were issued by the Noida authority, while 13 cases were recorded by the Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (Noida office). The air quality index (AQI) in Noida was recorded at 428 (severe) at 4 pm on Friday. The Noida authority said in a statement it imposed penalties worth Rs 13.80 lakh on 26 entities flouting GRAP guidelines. The authority said its 14 teams are daily inspecting construction sites, roads and open spaces to ensure compliance of the GRAP rules. Additionally, the pollution control board, imposed fines of Rs 10.50 lakh on 13 entities, including a penalty of Rs 5 lakh on a real estate developer, UPPCB's Regional Officer Utsav Sharma said. Meanwhile, the Noida Federation of Apartment Owners Association (NOFAA) demanded an odd-even scheme for vehicles to curb ...

GRAP III invoked, anti-smog guns deployed to fight against pollution

Invoking stage III of pollution control plan, deploying anti-smog guns and re-launching the 'Red light on, Gaadi off' campaign are among the measures taken by the Delhi government and other agencies with the city's air quality entering the 'severe' category, officials said. According to a Delhi government official, the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) stage 3 has been implemented in the national capital with a complete ban on construction or demolition activities. The Centre's pollution control panel invoked the GRAP III on Thursday, directing a halt on non-essential construction work, stone crushing and mining in Delhi-NCR. Under this stage, restrictions are also imposed on the operation of BS III petrol and BS IV diesel four-wheelers in Delhi, Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, and Gautam Budh Nagar. The Delhi administration, which has stepped up measures to tackle the pollution menace, has deployed anti-smog guns in several places such as Anand Vihar, Kashmiri Gate ISBT, ITO, Pusa

Air pollution situation extremely worrisome: Delhi LG calls meeting with CM

Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena Friday said the air pollution situation in the city is "extremely worrying" and called a meeting with Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Environment Minister Gopal Rai at Raj Niwas. In a series of posts on X, Saxena appealed to people to remain indoors and not to expose themselves and especially children and elderly to the hazardous ambient conditions. The LG has also cancelled his public engagements at Yogmaya Mandir and Urs of Khwaja Nizamuddin Auliya. "The situation arising out of air pollution in the City is extremely worrying. I have asked Hon'ble CM & Hon'ble Minister (Environment) for a meeting at Raj Niwas at 06:00 PM today, to take stock of the situation," he posted on "I appeal to the people to remain indoors as much as possible and to not expose themselves- especially children & elderly to hazardous ambient conditions wherein AQI has reportedly crossed 800 at places," he said in another post. Delhi's air quality plummeted to the .

Gopal Rai urges union environment minister to address pollution problem

Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai called upon his Union counterpart on Friday to become more active in addressing the air pollution problem, saying it's not just the national capital, but the entire north India that is breathing polluted air. Rai pointed out that the air pollution issue is not confined to Delhi alone, and the situation is the same across north India. He said, "The Bharatiya Janata Party is blaming Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for the air pollution problem in Delhi, but he is not responsible for the poor air quality in Uttar Pradesh and Haryana." At a press conference held here, he appealed to the Union environment minister to become more proactive, saying, "It doesn't seem like there's a Union Environment Ministry in Delhi." Rai said while he was taking all possible steps to address the problem, "No one knows what the environment ministers of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana are doing". Delhi's air quality plummeted to the "severe plus" category on Friday morn

Delhi-NCR air pollution today, 3 Nov: Government bans construction work

The air quality of Delhi NCR continues to worsen, with AQI at several places reaching alarming levels. Authorities imposed a ban on construction work and restrictions on diesel and petrol vehicles

Gopal Rai blames outsiders for Delhi pollution, says govt cannot control it

The Environment Minister said that Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal-led government in Delhi is working on a war footing to curb the pollution level

Haryana targets to reduce stubble burning by 50%: Dy Commmssioner Jind

Raza further said that 95% of paddy harvesting was already over and the stubble burning instances would get reduced

Congress seeks total revamp of Air Pollution Act amid rising AQI levels

The Congress on Friday voiced concern over rising air pollution in the country and called for a total revamp of the Air Pollution Act and air quality standards to make them stringent and effective. The demand came amid rising air pollution levels in the national capital and other parts of the country. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said The Air Pollution (Control and Prevention) Act came into being in 1981. Thereafter, ambient air quality standards were announced in April 1994 and later revised in October 1998, he noted. In November 2009, after a thorough review by IIT Kanpur and other institutions a more stringent and wide-ranging National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) was put into effect. This covered 12 pollutants considered very detrimental to public health, he said, while sharing the press note that accompanied the implementation of NAAQS which reveals the thinking for the significant shift that took place then. "It is now time for a revisit and a total reva

Hazy Friday morning in Delhi, AQI dips to 'severe' in various parts of city

Delhi pollution news today: Environment Minister Gopal Rai will hold a meeting of the concerned department on Friday at 12 PM to discuss the implementation of the Grap stage III in the capital

Primary schools in Delhi shut for 2 days in view of rising pollution: CM

All government and private primary schools in Delhi will remain closed for the next two days in view of rising pollution levels, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced Thursday night. Pollution levels in the national capital entered the "severe" zone for the first time this season on Thursday, with scientists warning of a further spike over the next two weeks. In a post on 'X', the chief minister said, "In light of the rising pollution levels, all govt and private primary schools in Delhi will remain closed for the next 2 days." At least 18 out of 37 monitoring stations in Delhi recorded Air Quality Index (AQI) in the severe category. The areas where AQI breached the 400-mark are - Anand Vihar (450), Bawana (452), Burari Crossing (408), Dwarka Sector 8 (445), Jahangirpuri (433), Mundka (460), NSIT Dwarka (406), Najafgarh (414), Narela (433), Nehru Nagar (400), New Moti Bagh (423), Okhla Phase 2 (415), Patparganj (412), Punjabi Bagh (445), R K Puram (417), Rohini (454), Shadipur .

As AQI turns 'serve' in Delhi, Centre bans non-essential construction work

The Centre's pollution control panel on Thursday issued directions to ban non-essential construction work in Delhi-NCR and the entry of diesel-guzzling trucks into the capital as the air quality in the city entered the 'severe' category. This action comes as part of Stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) -- the Centre's air pollution control plan that is implemented in the region during the winter season. Delhi's Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 402 at 5 pm. At a meeting to review the air quality situation in Delhi-NCR, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), a statutory body responsible for developing strategies to combat pollution in the region, said that the pollution levels are only "expected to increase further" owing to unfavourable meteorological and climatic conditions. GRAP categorises actions into four stages: Stage I - 'Poor' (AQI 201-300); Stage II - 'Very Poor' (AQI 301-400); Stage III - 'Severe' (AQI 401-450); and Stage IV - 'Severe Plus' (AQI .

BMC plans to set up office to seek hyper local data to tackle air pollution

Mumbai's civic body is in the process of setting up a command and control centre to collect data using sensor-based air quality index (AQI) monitoring devices, an official said on Thursday. The proposal is in the "pipeline", an official told PTI, adding devices will be installed in various areas of the metropolis for "hyper local" information. He, however, said no formal proposal has been prepared in connection with the initiative. A day earlier Mumbai guardian minister Deepak Kesarkar had told reporters six technologies, including vehicle-mounted air filters, have been identified for reducing air pollution in the city. As many as 350 buses of Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) will be fitted with "vehicle-mounted filters" for "removal of impurities" from dust and other particles, Kesarkar had said while addressing a press conference. As per the latest data of the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR-India), the overall AQI in Mumbai was

Next 15 days to remain crucial: Rai on deteriorating air quality in Delhi

"We need to work unitedly in order to curb the situation. Everyone needs to be aware of it", he said

Delhi-NCR air pollution today: Delhi's air turns hazardous, check updates

Delhi AQI remains in the very poor category. Low wind speed and continuous stubble burning are the key reasons behind poor air quality

Let the India party continue...

Among the movers and shakers in India's financial capital, there is a distinct sense of optimism about the future

Mumbai govt identifies 6 technological measures to curb air pollution

Fitting vehicle-mounted air filters on 350 BEST buses, setting up virtual chimneys at traffic congestion spots, placing special streetlights and installing air purification systems in select gardens are some of the technological measures being identified to control air pollution in Mumbai. Among other measures and actions, the city civic body has ordered 30 vehicles mounted with sprinklers, also called fog cannons, while notices have been served to readymix concrete units, and industries have been directed to increase the height of chimneys, said Mumbai district guardian minister Deepak Kesarkar. He said there won't be a ban on bursting crackers but citizens should use their discretion and burst fewer crackers. "IIT (Bombay) has identified various companies and technology offered by them is used on a trial basis in Mumbai. The technology which proves effective in reducing pollution will be given priority. We have identified six technologies, including vehicles-mounted air filters,"

No fireworks in Delhi, Mumbai during World Cup matches as pollution worsens

The BCCI has banned the display of fireworks during the remaining World Cup games in Delhi and Mumbai due to worsening air quality in the two mega cities. Delhi has only one match left to host, the Bangladesh-Sri Lanka game on November 6, while Mumbai are scheduled to host two more league games, on November 2 and November 7, and the semifinal on November 15. BCCI is sensitive to environmental concerns. I took up the matter formally with the ICC and there won't be any fireworks display in Mumbai, which can add to the pollution level," said BCCI secretary Jay Shah in a statement on Wednesday. "The Board is committed to combating environmental issues and will always place the interest of our fans and stakeholders at the forefront. The BCCI acknowledges the urgent concern surrounding air quality in both Mumbai and New Delhi. "While we strive to host the ICC World Cup in a manner befitting the celebration of cricket, we remain steadfast in our commitment to prioritising the health and .

Delhi air 'very poor' for 2nd day, AQI at 347; Hanumangarh's worst at 428

From tomorrow, all the diesel buses running in Delhi-NCR coming from outside are being directed to run on alternative fuel

Blurry skyline: Businesses hold their breath in Mumbai's smog-choked skies

With project execution and commercial office operations unaffected, city hopes for its air troubles to blow over