Delhi Government Launches 'Green War Room' To Monitor & Curb Air Pollution Levels In City

The Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai launched an advanced Green War Room as an extension under the winter action plan to combat air pollution. Launched on October 3, the room would be equipped to monitor the air pollution levels in the city 24×7 and convey measures to curb it.

With a dedicated team of 12, comprising environment scientists and other officials, they would look into the growing concern of the air quality index of the metropolitan city.

A Response Action Plan In Collaboration With The Delhiites

Rai had announced that the green room would work round the clock to ensure that all necessary measures were set in place to address the pollution levels of Delhi.

प्रदूषण के खिलाफ 'विंटर एक्शन प्लान' के बेहतर क्रियान्वयन के लिए 24×7 ग्रीन वार रूम लॉन्च। ग्रीन वार रूम की मॉनिटरिंग के लिए बनाई गई 12 सदस्यीय टीम। pic.twitter.com/txFR0S7Ne2

— Gopal Rai (@AapKaGopalRai) October 3, 2022

In accordance with the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), the members would analyse the pollution data of the city and provide insight into the severity of the situation. The war room would also be linked with the Green Delhi App, through which they can receive complaints from residents on pollution, garbage burning, and so on.

The information received here would be used to instruct the concerned departments to take necessary actions.

Since the launch of the Green Delhi App, the ministry has received about 54,156 complaints from residents in different parts of the city.

A report by NDTV quoted Rai saying, "out of the 54,156 complaints, nearly 90 per cent have been addressed. Maximum 32,573 complaints are related to MCD followed by PWD which have 9,118 complaints and 3,333 complaints are related to DDA."

Improved Air Quality Through 15-Point Winter Action Plan

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's 15-point Winter Action Plan to tackle air pollution was announced on September 30. The action plan was proposed as a structure that enabled the Centre, neighbouring towns, Commission for Air Quality Management to work collaboratively to curb the pollution levels.

Measures under this include installation of anti-smog guns, a ban on firecrackers, increased green cover, green war room, and so on.

Delhi's Winter Action Plan:

🌾Parali Decomposer
🪨Anti-Dust
🚗Vehicular Pollution
🗑️Waste Burning Ban
👨🏻‍🏭 Industry
💥Cracker Ban
🏭Real-time source
💚Paryavaran Mitra
♻️E-waste Park
🌳Green Cover
🪖Green War Room
📱Green Delhi App
🎯Hotspots
🚧GRAP
🤝🏼States

-CM @ArvindKejriwal pic.twitter.com/69jD2VTEU2

— AAP (@AamAadmiParty) September 30, 2022

As per a report by LiveMint, the GRAP was also introduced under the plan to set anti-air pollution measures in the national capital according to the severity of the situation as studied by the experts.

According to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) bulletins, the air quality across Delhi has been within the "poor" category. On October 2, the Air Quality Index (AQI) in Greater Noida was 220, and Anand Vihar was at 378.

According to the standards set by Air Now, AQI values at or below 100 are considered satisfactory. If the values exceed above 100, the air quality is deemed unhealthy and harmful for certain sensitive groups of people.

On account of these standard values, the AQI of Delhi is categorised as hazardous in many regions.

However, the chief minister has claimed the air quality in Delhi has improved in 2021-22 as compared to 2017-18 through collaborative efforts of over two crore people. Calling in for similar participation further ahead, he asked more people to send their feedback through the Green Delhi app.

Also Read: Deadly Air! 106 Deaths Per Lakh Population In Delhi Caused Due To PM2.5 Pollution, Claims Study