Delhi's air quality: Campaign to reduce vehicular pollution returns after a year

New Delhi: The Delhi government will re-launch a campaign to curb vehicular pollution on October 26, a year after Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena put it on hold, questioning its effectiveness.

Sources in the city government's environment department said the LG's permission will not be required for the "Red Light On Gaadi Off" campaign this year as the participants will not receive any honorarium, unlike in previous seasons.

Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai informed reporters that the campaign will kick off on October 26.

However, he mentioned that the odd-even car-rationing scheme, which allows cars to ply on alternate days based on odd or even number plates, is not currently under consideration.

The "Red Light on Gaadi Off" campaign, first launched on October 16, 2020, aims to reduce vehicular pollution in the national capital by encouraging drivers to switch off their vehicles while waiting for traffic lights to turn green.

A 2019 study conducted by the Central Road Research Institute showed that keeping engines running at traffic signals can increase pollution levels by more than 9 per cent.

Another study conducted at the Bhikaji Cama Place traffic intersection by the Petroleum Conservation Research Association (PCRA), under the Union Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, revealed that more than 62 per cent people began turning off their vehicles after a similar campaign.

Rai said the city government has identified eight more pollution hotspots, in addition to the existing 13, in the national capital. Special teams will be deployed at these spots to investigate the pollution sources.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Delhi has also decided to use suppressant powder to mitigate dust pollution.

Delhi's air quality deteriorated to the "very poor" category on Sunday for the first time since May, primarily due to a drop in the temperature and wind speed, which allowed pollutants to accumulate.

The air quality saw a slight improvement on Monday, with the 24-hour average Air Quality Index (AQI) being recorded at 263, compared to 313 on Sunday.