NEW DELHI: Officials from Delhi/NCR plans to implement the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), laying down stringent measures and enforcing restrictions to combat air pollution. Parking fees may be increased and diesel generators be banned in the Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR) from Monday. The idea behind it is if people can’t be wise on environment they would be wise on spending their hard earned money. This is what seems to be driving officials from Delhi/NCR to hike parking fees so that people adapt to using public transport, pooling strategies in order to curb down their expense on parking and in turn curbing down the pollution quotient caused by private vehicles.
The announcement came as farmers have begun burning crop residue and weather officials predicted a change in the wind direction – factors that can significantly worsen air quality in the national capital and cities on its outskirts.
GRAP, drawn up in response to an increasingly severe air quality crisis that has hit the NCR in recent years during winter, may also trigger restrictions such as the odd-even road rationing scheme and a ban on construction activity if the air quality deteriorates to levels seen in 2016 and 2017 when pollution was considered a public health emergency.
According to the Central Pollution Control Board, which met on Thursday, the air quality index has been in the ‘poor’ category since the first week of October and is likely to deteriorate to ‘very poor’ later this month as atmospheric conditions change.