Alarming AQI in Delhi, CM Atishi blames BJP for farm fire crisis
While the Supreme Court was pulling up the government of Delhi for the worsening air quality in the city, Chief Minister Atishi blamed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led central government taking no step to check stubble burning, one of the factors that contribute to air pollution in the national capital.
North India is facing a medical emergency due to hazardous air quality caused by stubble burning, Delhi Chief Minister Atishi said on Monday, adding that the BJP-led central government was “only indulging in politics” and has taken no step to check the issue.
The air quality in Delhi has been going down since October end and has been worsening since then, with the same attributed to multiple factors such as firecrackers and stubble burning – most common in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan.
“Today, I want to ask the central government why stubble burning has been increasing over the last 6-7 years. Can the central government tell a single step it has taken to prevent this from happening?” CM Atishi said at a press conference on Monday.
She asked that if the Punjab government, led by her party AAP, can reduce stubble burning by 80 per cent, then “why are the cases increasing in other states.”
“Why has the entire North India been pushed into a state of medical emergency?” said Delhi CM Atishi.
Delhi’s ‘severe-plus’ AQI
Delhi and its adjoining areas of Gurugram, Noida and Ghaziabad were covered in a thick blanket of smog, a day after the air quality in the national capital worsened to ‘severe-plus’ category, necessitating the need for the activation of the Stage 4 of the anti-pollution Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) from Monday morning and triggering possibility of the odd-even rule for cars of coming into effect.
Some of the areas in Delhi-NCR had close to zero visibility on Monday morning.
The overall Air Quality Index (AQI) in Delhi at around 8:30 am on Monday morning stood at 484, the ‘severe’-plus’ category, according to readings in the Sameer app, which provides hourly update of the National Air Quality Index published by Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
The Supreme Court, meanwhile, on Monday asked the Delhi government about steps taken to curb rising pollution level in national capital. The top court questioned the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led Delhi government over tehe delay in implementation of Stage 4 of GRAP in the city despite the alarming rise in pollution.