The AAP government has banned the use of electricity generators. (Figurative)
New Delhi:
The Government of the AAP has prohibited the use of electricity generators, except those necessary for essential or emergency services, in the national capital, since the anti-pollution measures of the Grada Response Action Plan (GRAP) come into force as of Thursday in the Delhi-NCR region.
GRAP, which comes into force in Delhi and its neighboring cities according to the severity of air pollution, was first notified by the Ministry of Environment and Forests in 2017 for implementation through the Authority (Prevention and Control ) of Environmental Pollution ordered by the Supreme Court.
“The Delhi Pollution Control Committee hereby prohibits the operation of generator sets of all capacities, running on diesel, gasoline or kerosene in Delhi from October 15 until further orders, excluding those used for essential services or emergency, “said an official order.
Essential services include healthcare facilities, elevators, rail services, Delhi metro, airports and interstate bus terminals, and the data center managed by the National Center for Informatics.
The DPCC also ordered power companies to ensure an uninterrupted power supply to consumers.
It also issued an order implementing EPCA’s instructions to enforce GRAP as of Thursday.
The EPCA had previously mandated that large construction projects, including roads and the subway, will have to provide commitments to state pollution control boards / pollution control committees that they will ensure compliance with prescribed standards for the dust management.
“Industries, particularly in the Red and Orange category, will provide the commitment that they will use only authorized fuel and will not operate without adequate pollution control measures,” he had said.
Authorities classify industries according to pollution index scores calculated based on emissions, effluents, hazardous waste generated, and resource consumption.
Based on relative scores, industries are classified in the Red category if their score is greater than or equal to 60 and in the Orange category if the score is between 41 and 59. Those who have a score between 21 to 40 and less than 20 are They include Green and White categories respectively.
The EPCA had also directed states to ensure the implementation and full compliance of the action plan on identified hotspots through ground-level surveillance and night patrols “to ensure zero tolerance for all sources of pollution, including burning waste and dust. “
Controlling air pollution during winter will require increased vigilance on the ground so that sources, such as industrial smokestacks and the dumping of garbage and the use of illegal fuels, are controlled and penalized, he said.
All dust management technologies, including smog guns, should be widely used during this period.
Measures under GRAP, which was first implemented at Delhi-NCR in 2017, include increasing bus and metro services, increasing parking fees, and stopping the use of diesel generator sets when air quality worsens.
When the situation becomes “severe”, GRAP recommends shutting down brick kilns, stone crushers and hot mix plants, spraying water, frequent mechanized road cleaning, and maximizing power generation from natural gas. .
Measures to be taken in the “emergency” situation include stopping trucks from entering Delhi, banning construction activities and introducing the odd-pair vehicle rationing scheme.
However, EPCA had previously told Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh that “they should try to avoid the need for other emergency pollution control measures, as the economy is already under pressure after the shutdown. So our combined effort is to make sure there are no more disruptions. ”
.
